Love At Last
by MirandaMinerva
Summary: Kittyhawk femslash: starts during OotP
1. Misconceptions

"Minerva, I would have hardly believed what you did for Professor Trelawney if it wasn't confirmed by several faculty." Professor Snape leered at Professor McGonagall as they prepared to sit down to supper that evening.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Minerva snapped as she sat down, her voice sharp and loud. Several students at the nearby Hufflepuff table paused and looked up at the head table. She peered at them sharply over her square glasses, and the students quickly blanched and looked away.

On the other side of Severus, Madam Hooch snorted loudly. Minerva's body jerked at the sound, but she otherwise gave no reaction, and did not even move to look at the Quidditch referee / flying instructor. Hooch fidgeted with her tie and looked down at her food. 

"Severus, I am a professional. I act as such. Just because I have no belief in the prediction abilities of others, does not mean that I'm going to defend them any less vehemently." Here, Minerva slid a quick glance in the direction of Hooch without moving her head. She carefully watched as Hooch moved food around on her plate. With a gentle sigh, Minerva turned back to her own plate.

When she was done playing with her food, Hooch got up to leave. She paused behind Minerva and leaned over to quietly whisper to her. 

"Thank you, nonetheless, Minerva. It was very kind of you."

Minerva turned her head just slightly, capturing a whiff of Hooch's familiar lavender scent along with something else she couldn't quite place. She could see part of Hooch's robes, blades of grass and a smattering of dirt clumps clinging along the bottom hem of the black cloth. 

"Not to worry, Rolanda." Suddenly, it hit her. Black tea. Hooch smelled like tea leaves…Trelawney. Miranda's throat constricted instantly, and her stomach clenched. 

Hooch seemed to sense something, and her golden eyes softened to a pale yellow glow, "All the same, thank you. And," here, her eyes twinkled, "don't think this means I'll be more forgiving the next time I referee a Gryffindor Quidditch match." Her lips twitched, a smile upon them. 

Minerva chuckled. Hooch always found a way to make her laugh. Hooch straightened up, and as she turned to finish her departure from the Great Hall, gave Minerva's shoulder a gentle pat and rub. Minnie sighed, despite herself. Her eyes misted over.

"It wouldn't last, you're too much alike." Professor Snape held Minerva's gaze, letting her know that once again, he missed nothing. So very much like Dumbledore. Both these men could read Minerva's every expression, whether it was displayed on her face or not. It was, however, annoying to think that Severus thought she had no chance with Hooch.

Minerva dipped her head, then raised her hand to cover her mouth as she cleared her throat and excused herself as well.

Hooch rapped her knuckles gently on the wooden door in the North tower where she and Trelawney shared rooms. 

"Go away, Minerva. I'm not up to a game of 20 questions at the moment, nor am I interested in snogging right now. Mara is due any moment, and it wouldn't do to get caught. You must know how she feels about you."

Hooch raised her eyebrows and tilted her head, confused. 'WHAT?!'

The door flung open suddenly, throwing her back in stunned surprise. 

"Tricks on you," Sibyll smiled widely, her glasses not on, but resting atop her head. 

Hooch was left speechless, her eyes wide, face pale, and her lips slightly parted. Sibyll giggled, hooked a scarf-covered arm behind one of Hooch's elbows, and pulled the woman into their common room, arm in arm.

Hooch's brain caught up with her and she stopped short just inside the door as it closed behind her. Sibyll turned to look back at her. Hooch stared at Sibyll for a long moment.

"Cat got your tongue?" Sibyll giggled at her own joke.

Hooch reached out with both hands and tickled Sibyll's sides mercilessly. After a moment, she stopped and pulled back to allow the wild-haired woman to breathe. Hooch's golden eyes twinkled brightly as she observed Sibyll. With her glasses off, and the multicolored scarves floating around her slight frame, the Divination teacher was pretty. Just not Xiomara's type. They had become fast friends almost 6 years ago when Hooch arrived at Hogwarts. Both were viewed as a bit odd by the faculty and students alike.

Sibyll's eyes crinkled up as she realized that Hooch's mind was a million miles away.

"Xiomara Rolanda Deanna Hooch, admit it. I got you with the whole Minerva at the door bit." Sibyll giggled. 

Hooch shook her head and wagged a finger at Sibyll. Trelawney ignored the motion and reached out to loosen Hooch's tie.

Hooch chuckled, a low, warm laugh. At that moment, there was a sharp rap at the door followed by someone forcefully throwing it open.

"Bloody Hell, Minnie!" Hooch cried out. Trelawney merely stared at the blurry vision of Minerva before them, her hands frozen on Hooch's tie. 'There she is,' Sibyll thought. 'I was beginning to think I was wrong about her coming.'

Minerva McGonagall blinked momentarily at the scene before her, shock and disbelief clearly written across her face. She'd had suspicions, of course. The rumors had circled for years that Professor Trelawney was bisexual, and Hooch was known as a bit of a lesbian, well, slut, while she was playing for the Holyhead Harpies. Sibyll had frequently made comments indicating that she and Hooch were at least good friends. The two women had separate personal rooms, but shared the North Tower common room. Because both women were a bit unusual in their own ways, the rest of the staff was more than happy to have them off in the Tower, a bit separated from the rest of the staff and Head-of-House rooms.

Minerva pinched in her cheeks a little without realizing it, attempting to thwart the tears she felt building up, 'Well, like Severus said, Rolanda and I are too much alike.' Her eyes misted over. 'I don't know why I persist in thinking I could ever have a chance with her.'

Hooch, eyes locked on Minerva, stepped away from Sibyll, her loosened tie slipping from bejeweled fingers. Professor Trelawney's head jerked as she realized something. Quickly, she slipped her glasses off her head and perched them on her nose.

"Minerva, I'm guessing your energetic entrance was for a particular reason?" Despite herself, Hooch smirked, a fact not lost on Minerva.

"Er, yes." Minerva focused her gaze through her small square glasses. 

"I had agreed to talk to Professor Trelawney after dinner. When I approached, I heard the sound of voices, and jumped to the conclusion," here she paused as she broke eye contact with Hooch to gaze apologetically at Sibyll, " the wrong conclusion, mind you, that Dolores was here causing further trouble." 

When Minerva looked back at Hooch, the soft twinkling golden eyes captured her. Indeed, Hooch was a vision, with her tie loosened and slightly askew and her hair slightly mussed. 

"Th-thank you, Minerva," Sibyll sputtered. "I wanted to th-thank you for telling that hor-horrid Umbridge off for me."

Minerva tore her glazed eyes from Hooch to look at Sibyll.

"Not to worry, Professor Trelawney. My pleasure, which I believe I told you earlier." The sight of Sibyll's wild hair fluttering around and those large eyes…'Whatever does Hooch see in her?' she thought bitterly.

"I –I –I would like to repay you, Min-Minerva. How-how about dinner to-tomorrow evening?" 

Both Madam Hooch and Professor McGonagall stared at her with raised eyebrows.

Seemingly oblivious to their looks of incredulity, Sibyll smiled slyly.

"Well, I suppose," Minerva spoke, watching Hooch from the corner of her eye. Hooch seemed almost sick, suddenly. She fidgeted with her calloused hands in front of her.

Sibyll continued, "You will receive a more formal invitation by owl in the morning." Here, she gently moved some of her flyaway hair to the side, smiling. As her scarves floated up in the movement, Minerva captured a wisp of sherry and pulled herself up more rigidly.

"Oh, you want to ask something," Sibyll paused, tapped a slender finger to her lips for a moment. "Xiomara will be tutoring Ms. Weasley on some advanced flying techniques tomorrow evening." 

Hearing this, Hooch furrowed her brow, 'So, Sibyll wanting to make a move on her after all? And Minerva's rants about Sibyll? I should have known that they both doth protest too much, so to speak.'

Minerva's face relaxed for a moment, 'Thank goodness. I'd be falling over myself trying to impress Rolanda, all for naught.' Sibyll and Hooch both noticed that Minerva seemed pleased with this information. 

Suddenly, Professor McGonagall's head popped up, "Xiomara?" She looked to Hooch.

"My full name is Xiomara Rolanda Deanna Hooch. When I was recruited to the Harpies, I was told that the Brits would have a hard time with my first name. So, Rolanda it was. After 20 odd years, I grew used to it. When Albus recruited me for Hogwarts, it seemed that I could not shake going by my middle name-or one of my middle names." Here Hooch shrugged, "That's all." She looked down at the floor.

"It's a lovely name. Xiomara," Minerva barely whispered. Hooch dragged her eyes up to see that Minerva's eyes registered surprise at her own words. They stared at one another for long moments.

"Well, I shall look forward to dinner, Sibyll. I'm sure it will be…interesting." Minerva turned on her heels and swept out the door.

After several long moments, Hooch turned to Sibyll, "You could have just told me you were interested in her. I'm not happy, but I would have understood." The sorrow in her tone was reflected in her facial features.

Hooch reached out and took one of Sibyll's hands between her own, "Good luck with her, my dear." She gave the hand a gentle squeeze, then let it slip away as she turned and went up the stairs to her room.

Late that evening, Sibyll was on her knees in the grass outside, when the swishing of robes came upon her.

"Albus, I was wondering how much longer I would have to wait for you. Its getting cold, you know." Professor Trelawney raised a hand and Professor Dumbledore took it and helped her to her feet. She smiled into his twinkling eyes.

"I was slowed down by Filch. My apologies, dear." 

She smirked and patted his chest, "Don't let it happen again. Dear goodness, if you're going to be slowed down by someone, at least let it be someone more attractive."

His chuckle rolled over her, warming even her fingers, which had become chilled by the late night air.

"Sibyll, you are a joy, and I have missed our regular talks. Tell me, what romance has got you troubled this evening? Surely you aren't still troubled by Miss Granger and Mister Weasley?"

"Albus, I tell you this: Hermione Granger may indeed marry that Weasley boy, but I see danger in that relationship – for her. No good will come of it." She paused, "But I digress. What makes you think I am pondering romance at the moment?"

"Why else would you be looking for ladybugs? I do know a bit about sealing romantic blessings, child." He put an arm around her shoulder while his other hand dug around in a pocket of his robes. They began walking back towards the castle, Sibyll gently cradling a small jar with ladybugs flitting around inside. 

"Sherbet Lemon?"

"No, Albus. But thank you for the offer." Sibyll pushed her glasses up her nose as she peered at the fuzz covered yellow candy being offered up, secretly wishing that her glasses weren't so clean at the moment. He popped the lint-coated candy into his mouth, and Sibyll contained a shiver of nausea.

As they entered the castle and prepared to part paths to their respective rooms, Professor Trelawney hunched forwards a bit, tapping Albus' arm, deciding she simply must tell him.

"Believe it or not, at long last, the most impossible romance may finally occur."

"The most impossible romance? Which would mean that Minerva and I have become straight and fallen in love? Please," he waves a hand dismissively, "I don't want to hear such things at this late hour. I'll have nightmares."

Sibyll giggled, a bubbly laugh ringing out in the now empty halls, "Oh, dear, no. But you were right in the fact that Minerva is involved."

Albus stopped short and looked at her. He carefully reached out, his well-manicured nails reflecting the light as he gently slid her glasses from her face and propped them up top her head.

She nodded, "Yes. Tomorrow night, I have set her up to have dinner with Xiomara. But neither knows yet. They both think I am having Minerva for dinner myself, to repay her for standing up to Umbridge. Speaking of Dolores…that horrid toad of an Inquisitor is shagging Filch as we speak down in the dungeons."

Albus' eyes widened, "Sibyll, my dear, you know how to ruin a beautiful moment. My heart was lifted by the thought of my dearest friend finally realizing love with Mara, and then you make me feel like I've just eaten a vomit flavored Bertie Bott with that Umbridge-Filch rot." With that, he kissed her cheek, then carefully replaced her glasses on her nose.

"Goodnight, Sibyll. I shall look forward to the positive results of your labors as a matchmaker."

Sibyll chuckled to herself, readjusted her glasses, and held up the jar of ladybugs to the lamplights before scampering off towards the North tower. She had to admit to herself that sometimes playing matchmaker was a bit more fun than simply predicting a match.

Hooch was asleep in one of the armchairs in their common room, half snoring, her lips slightly parted and the firelight dancing over her somnolent figure. Sibyll took a blanket from the back of the nearby loveseat and gently tucked it around the sleeping form. She slid a pillow gently behind Hooch's head and kissed her temple gently, taking in the scent of lavender, wood polish, and leather. 

'Considering how short her hair is, it is difficult to believe such a mixture of scents could get captured in it, let alone smell so good in combination.' Sibyll smiled to herself and continued on up the stairs into her personal rooms.

When she slipped into bed, she carefully placed her earplugs in place, and put her glasses on the bedside table. She pulled a tie-dyed sleep mask from the top drawer and slid it into place before settling into her pillows for a good night's rest.

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	2. It's A Date

The next morning, Sybil captured Hooch departing as the sun was just starting to peek on the horizon

A/N: The full name I gave Hooch is a mix of her fanfic name (which I adore), her 'canon' name (sadly, Rolanda, which, I think, doesn't fit her well, but will honor anyway -- gag), and a name (Deanna) from DebbieB-MinervaFan. Her series Remembrall/True Nature—stunning.

The next morning, Sibyll captured Hooch departing as the sun was just starting to peek on the horizon.

"Xiomara, I realize that you were born with the Sun in your House of Capricorn, so you are a naturally early riser. Nonetheless, it is aggravating. Will you please review the menu for this evening?"

Hooch was about to fire off some snappy remark, but bit her lower lip momentarily and found kinder words.

"Sure. Let's see what you have." She glanced at Sibyll – taking in the rumpled bedclothes, bloodshot eyes, and hair more mussed-up than usual. 'Her drinking is getting a bit out of hand lately, I should think.'

Sibyll handed over a card with a wide iridescent border and a handwritten message in flowing peacock blue calligraphy. Hooch was reminded of Sibyll's many talents, not the least of which was excellent penmanship. 

The card read, as follows:

Professor Minerva McGonagall 

is hereby invited to dinner

this evening

at 6:30 pm 

on the 7th floor patio

Menu

_Autumn Stew _

with chicken, squash, potatoes, carrots

_Spinach salad _

with mandarin oranges, dried cranberries, almonds 

& raspberry vinaigrette dressing

_Crème Brule_

Hooch nodded her approval and handed the card back to Sibyll, "I know Minerva has remarked how she loves the stew when you've conjured it for staff lunches before, and crème brule is a terribly wonderful dessert. The salad…hmmm. Well, it sounds both familiar and absolutely scrumptious."

"I got the idea for the salad from you, Xiomara. Some silly Muggle restaurant in the States served it during one of your road trips with the Harpies. You went on about it during an inebriated New Year's Eve rant."

Hooch had the good sense to look ashamed, her cheeks coloring pink, and her eyes casting about, "Oh."

Sibyll put a finger under Hooch's chin to lift it, "Xiomara, I saw something in my tea leaves this morning." She paused and for a moment glanced over her shoulder to where her teacup sat on the sideboard. Hooch had to prevent the giggle that rose in her throat whenever Sibyll read things in her tea. It was a sure sign that she was making something up. 

"I fear that I will start to feel ill sometime this afternoon and won't be able to carry through with this event," Sibyll paused before continuing, "Not a good night to cancel social engagements—the moon is in the House of Jupiter and I drew a 3 of clubs this morning. Which means you will have to replace me at dinner this evening. I envision you looking absolutely smashing in that tailored women's tuxedo suit you've worn before. Yes…" Her voice faded at this.

Hooch's face lit up brightly and she suddenly pecked Sibyll with a kiss just to the side of her mouth. As she stepped back again, she tried not to focus on the scent of cooking sherry. 

"You are such a dear," she sighed as she nervously straightened her tie, adjusted her robes about her, and gently tugged a few spikes of hair with a nervous hand.

Professor Trelawney had a lilt in her voice as she went on, "I will surely have to put ear plugs in this evening at 6:25 pm sharp, as Minerva's initial reaction, I predict, will be a bit deafening. Although, I doubt she will be as unhappy as if it were me there as hostess."

Hooch chuckled, her eyes crinkling with joy, "Sibs, you are too much. You know that? Thank you. I have to ask, though, WHY are you doing this?"

Sibyll studied Xiomara, her magnified eyes roving and blinking a few times before she responded.

"You two are destined for each other. I saw it in a dream when I first arrived at Hogwarts and met Professor Minerva McGonagall 16 years ago." Sibyll paused, contemplating the invitation resting in her hands. When she continued, her voice had its usual melodramatic intonations.

"She doesn't appreciate Seers or the art of Divination. I'm used to such skepticism, of course. There are so few who comprehend the gift properly. It is my fate. You, Xiomara, are among the minority -- accepting my ability without prejudice. It was disturbing last night, however, when you accused me of desiring Minerva myself. I appreciate the female form, Mara, but I do NOT desire women. Most especially someone as ignorant as HER." 

She sighed, "Since Minerva attempted to rescue me from Dolores, I feel I should put aside my feelings about her and help you to woo her. After all, I did have that dream, like I said. It might be nice to see it finally come true."

Hooch clasped Sibyll's hands in her own, squeezing them tightly, and just as quickly let go, practically flying out of the room.

Late that afternoon, Severus stormed across the grounds towards the Quidditch fields where the Ravenclaws were completing practice. Although the day was already overcast, the clouds seemed to darken behind him.

"Madam Hooch, a word," his voice was low, but carried easily.

Hooch pulled her goggles up to rest on her forehead, slight circular indents left around her eyes. She slid a gloved hand through her hair and walked with him towards the broom shed.

"I have spoken with Professor Trelawney. She is floating on a non-sherry induced cloud about this evening. It is repulsive. If you screw up tonight, we will all have to endure melodramatic enactments of distress from our resident Seer. That and you could put Professor McGonagall into a worse mood than usual. When Minerva isn't happy, she inevitably schedules me to chaperone weekend trips into Hogsmeade." He glared harshly at her.

"I WILL hex you." With that, he turned on his heel and headed back towards the castle. His black robes swirled around him as he reached out and slapped the back of Padma Patil's head in irritation as he passed. Hooch stood there, dumfounded.

"Madam Hooch?" Cho Chang tapped her elbow. When Hooch turned her gaze, Cho blushed and ducked her head. 

"Alright, everybody. Let's call it a day." She blew her whistle. The students quickly put their brooms away and packed away the Quidditch items in their team chest. 

Hooch hopped on her own broom and took a leisurely flight back to the castle, meandering around the grounds for a few minutes after ensuring all the students made it inside in a timely fashion. It wouldn't do for Dolores to get on her high horse over students dilly-dallying back from practice. 

The mere thought of Umbridge caused Hooch to shiver, and she quickly landed by the front doors. Minerva watched her from her study window, placing a warm hand against the glass for a moment before turning back to her desk.

The winds whipped the first of the fallen autumn leaves around; some of those leaves taping against the windows of Minerva's rooms. She glanced up as the sharp snap of a dry twig against a pane momentarily distracted her from the frenzied thoughts over what robes to wear to dinner. 

'I don't want to look too uptight, but by Gods and Goddesses, I don't want her getting any ideas…' Minerva hated her own indecisiveness. It was not a trait she fancied.

After another moment's hesitation, she settled on an emerald green gown with a golden floral pattern stitched in it, and a dark green-black set of dress robes. She let her hair out of its usual workday bun, and with quick fingers slipped it into a gentle braid down her back. Slipping a gold broach into place over her heart, she flicked her wand at the candles and lamps, darkening her rooms as she shut the door quietly behind her.

As she prepared to move swiftly down the corridor towards the stairs for the seventh floor, a voice plaintively rang out down the nearly empty hallway.

"Professor?"

"Ah, Miss Granger."

Hermione paused as she caught up with her professor, suddenly losing her nerve.

"Well, out with it." Hermione's face registered surprise for a moment before she noticed the twinkle in Professor McGonagall's eye.

"Er, well, I wanted to speak to you a bit about the Order. But it will hold until tomorrow. We can talk then?"

"Yes, Hermione. I will be sure to look for you tomorrow and we can talk." Minerva's eyes betrayed her and darted down the hallway, as she did not want to be late. The thought of Sibyll's high-pitched whiny squeal over the rare event of Minerva being tardy chilled her.

Hermione read her professor's body language, confirming her thoughts that this was not a good time. 

"Well, have a good evening, Professor." Hermione lightly tapped her Professor's arm then moved away down a hall. As she moved off, Hermione took a backwards glance at Professor McGonagall, a faint blush to her cheeks. She thought about how the hairdo made the mature woman look more relaxed, younger, and seriously attractive.

As Minerva made her way to the seventh floor balcony, her mind considered Hermione's words. She smiled to herself as she came to the conclusion that the trio of friends was likely planning something that would boil Dolores Umbridge's blood. And that was a delightful thought indeed.

"You're smiling like the cat who ate the canary. Or so the saying goes." 

Minerva's head snapped at the sound of Hooch's voice. While lost in thought, Minerva had arrived at the patio, and was disconcerted to realize that she had been caught off guard. 

Once her eyes found Hooch herself, the ability to think failed her altogether. For Hooch was standing only a few feet from her wearing an A-line black skirt that came to just below her knees and a smart looking matching tuxedo-style jacket tailored to fit to Hooch's curves. Oh, yes, Hooch had curves, and Minerva would have been blind to miss them in that outfit. 

While Minerva stood there, her mouth slightly agape, Hooch drifted closer and handed her a glass. It was then that Minerva noticed that under the tuxedo-style jacket, there was a pearly white vest over a well-starched white oxford. 

Hooch pointed at her own tie, tapping it with a short, square finger, "The brooch, Minnie, is a nice touch."

At hearing Hooch using a seldom used nickname, Minerva's brain finally kicked in. "Oh, yes. Well, I've had it for a few years."

"Yes, I've noticed it before," Hooch remarked. "You seem to go through phases where you prefer it for awhile, then switch to either your Gryffindor coat of arms or another brooch with a green leafy design." 

Minerva's eyebrow shot up as she realized Hooch had been tracking something so, well, trivial. Hooch smirked in response.

"I thought you were giving someone flying lessons."

"Well, I must admit, that was news to me…when Sybs mentioned it. I think she was trying to put you at ease – so you wouldn't be put off by the thought of dinner with both her and I." Hooch watched Minerva for a reaction that did not appear, so she continued.

"As it is, she isn't feeling at all well this evening and rather than cancel on you at the last moment, asked me to fill in. Something about the moon in Jupiter or some such thing." She watched Minerva again. Still nothing registered on Minerva's poker face.

Hooch decided to test the waters, "I must admit that while Sibyll might think I am doing her a favor, I think I am making out like a bandit. Good food and pleasant company to boot."

Minerva chuckled, "Oh, you are a sweet talker when you so desire, Rolanda. Or, rather, Xiomara?"

Hooch blushed, and even with the setting sun darkening the sky, it was obvious. She was sure her name never sounded so lovely as it did when Minerva said it. She recovered her senses and offered her arm.

Leading Minerva to the table set in the middle of the patio area, she pulled out a chair for her.

Minerva settled her robes around her, taking in the glow of the lanterns around the patio edge, the candles on the table, along with a bouquet of tulips as a centerpiece. 

As Xiomara took a seat herself, she watched as Minerva leaned in to admire the flowers.

"Wherever did she, or you, find such a beautiful array of colors? I never knew tulips could come in so many colors!"

"Ah. Sibyll's squib brother and his partner live in the Netherlands at the moment. I won't tell you how we got them here, as it would mean revealing that several of Umbridge's rules have been broken. And, I must confess, I have no remorse. Whatsoever."

Minerva chuckled. Xiomara savored the image, tucking it away in her memory – Minerva's face and hair seemingly lit up by the darkening indigo color of the sky behind her. 

"Well, I see that you haven't touched your drink. Would you like something else?"

Minerva furrowed her brows, then vaguely recalled that Xiomara had handed her a glass earlier and she had even set it down on the table herself, without even thinking about it.

"What the hell is it?"

Xiomara had to laugh this time, "Ah, Minnie. Live a little. It's called a Lemon Drop. Albus simply adores them, as you might guess. They aren't half bad. If you would prefer something else, however, I understand."

Minerva dipped her head, "I don't mind giving it a go, but I'm not much for mixed drinks." She raised the glass and took a sip of the cloudy yellow liquid.

Hooch snorted and took the glass from Minerva, "Judging from that face, it most definitely is not something we will note on your favourites list."

She carried the drink away to a small side table, returning with two large bowls of stew, the steam rising from the brims.

As Hooch sat down across from her, she queried, "What would you prefer to drink with your stew?" Minerva looked up into the glow of Hooch's golden eyes, and spoke without thinking.

"Chardonnay." Minerva, in fact, was not a wine drinker, or very much interested in any sort of alcohol, generally speaking. She had, therefore, surprised herself, with her answer.

Hooch swiftly conjured a glass of pale white-yellow liquid, slipping her wand neatly back under her jacket afterwards. Minerva took the glass and timidly sipped.

"What a treasure!!"

"It's a 1996 Ferrari-Carano," Hooch grinned widely. "I'm glad you like it."

"Absolutely delightful." With that, they both took their napkins from the table and covered their laps before tucking into the stew. For several minutes, all was silent but for the occasional clink of spoon in bowl. Hooch watched each time Minerva sipped her wine.

"Would you like a taste?" Minerva queried at last, self-conscious of the attention being bestowed upon her.

Hooch chuckled warmly, wriggling her eyebrows. Minerva realized the double entendre and blushed a deep crimson, her ears feeling suddenly hot.

Hooch giggled, then schooled her features, "Sorry, Minnie. I couldn't help myself." Hooch then moved her own water glass to one side, pulled her wand out and conjured up her own glass of the wine.

"So, Minerva. I've been meaning to ask you," Hooch replaced the now empty soup bowls with salad plates.

"Yes?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes. I've seen your name on several plaques in the Quidditch case."

Minerva puzzled over this for a moment while Xiomara brought a salad bowl over to the table.

"That's plenty," Minerva waved a hand at her. Xiomara moved to pile up salad on her own dish.

"So. You. Quidditch? Hogwarts?"

Minerva then shared tales of her days at Hogwarts as both Chaser and Seeker for the House she now headed. Xiomara responded in all the right spots, prompted along the way, and before they both knew it, they had finished their salads, deserts, and were on their second cup of tea.

"Hem, hem."

Both women's spines went ramrod straight. 

"What is this?"

Xiomara stood and circled around to stop in front of Dolores. She leant in close to the woman and spoke quietly.

"We were taking a break from some wild snogging. Would you like to join us?"

Minerva watched as Professor Umbridge's eyes widened and her face turned green. Although both women standing there were approximately the same height, Dolores appeared to shrink, looking increasingly toad-like.

After a moment, Dolores spoke, "It would be so very easy to replace you, Xiomara. I suggest you exercise more maturity." As she turned, she added, "and discretion."

Minerva stood and crossed to stand behind Xiomara. They stood there for several long moments. Xiomara enjoyed the sound of Minerva's breathing. A shift in the chilly breeze brought her back to her senses.

Xiomara turned and began to clear away the table. Minerva watched her movements. As the flight instructor glided towards the table to pick up the wine goblets, their eyes met.

Minerva tilted her head, "May I ask you a question?"

Hooch chuckled and patted her arm as she circled around her, "I believe you just did."

Minerva rolled her eyes, but continued, "Why so much Muggle work here tonight? Were you Muggle born, or are you part of Miss Granger's S.P.E.W. network?"

"Yes and yes. My mother was a Muggle. And I've provided what support I can to Hermione's work for the betterment of house elves. But you must understand - that last bit does NOT go back to either Professor Dumbledore or to the Ministry. I don't want to get in trouble for interacting with a student or supporting the S.P.E.W. Merlin knows there have been enough rumours about me snogging various female students as it is. Last thing either Miss Granger or myself needs at this time is people thinking the wrong thing about either of us or the S.P.E.W."

Minerva felt her chest tighten momentarily, "You had better NOT be toying with Hermione. Even if just for sport."

Hooch's eyes widened and she sat back down with a sigh, "Well, not to worry there. I realize you are a bit protective when it comes to Ms Granger, but I can tell you that I am completely professional. She is a student, Minerva. A mere teenager. It is aggravating to have to swat off tall tales of lesbian seduction created by students. When fellow staff are fooled into believing such tripe, well, it is more than a little disheartening."

"Such things wouldn't just come out of nowhere, Xio-mara, " Minerva bit her words. "Just a moment ago, you played the part for Dolores."

"True, you have me there. I HAVE used the rumours to my advantage, like I did minutes ago. Hooch sighed at this, "The original story sprouted from the publicist for the Holyhead Harpies. Created a whole bit of spin around me as a Don Juanita. Great for increasing interest, but surely made it near impossible for me to get a date with a proper girl. With time, I started to play it to my advantage when needed. I shouldn't, though. How can I complain about my poor prospects when I feed into it? I reap what I sow, I suppose." She smirked at this self-revelation.

Minerva blinked.

"I'm sorry, Xiomara. I shouldn't have snapped at you. Especially when you have been an impressive hostess—and a substitute at that. In fact, I venture to say that the evening turned out infinitely more enjoyable than I planned."

Xiomara nodded, her voice as smooth as honey, "Not to worry. It has been a very long week, and while the food and company have been truly pleasant, perhaps we had both better turn in. The high Inquisitor is sure to return."

Minerva involuntarily giggled at this. Xiomara gently swatted Minerva's arm, then gently put a hand at the small of Minerva's back and moved into the castle. They paused momentarily outside Minerva's rooms.

"Goodnight, Minerva. Perhaps we could do this again sometime?" Hooch arched an eyebrow as she clasped one of Minerva's hands in her own, then let it go. 

As she slipped away down the corridor, Minerva realized that Xiomara hadn't tried to make a move on her, and, a little disappointed, called after her, "That would be lovely."

Xiomara paused, and took several steps back to Minerva.

"Really?" Minerva lost herself in the smaller woman's golden honey eyes.

"Yes. Really."

Xiomara gave a small nod of her head and moved off, a slight sashay to her walk that wasn't there before. As she turned the corner, she gave Minerva a wink, then disappeared.

Minerva sighed, then whispered, "Holyhead Harpies," and passed through the entrance to her rooms.

Both women tossed restlessly in their sleep that night.

Please tap that "Submit Review" button and share your thoughts. What worked, what didn't. C'mon, you know you want to…


	3. Contemplations

Well, here we are at the third chapter. Apologies for the delayed posting. Was easily sidetracked into reading the plethora of lovely Minerva-Hermione stories being released lately. Chapter 4 shouldn't take nearly so long to roll out. Or so I hope. Oh, and in case you smacked your head, leading you to think otherwise – let me point out blatantly that I do not have any ownership rights in any way, shape, or form to the Harry Potter characters. They are, of course, completely under the jurisdiction of one J.K. Rowling. I am merely playing with the characters in ways she never envisioned (whether or not that is a good thing remains to be determined…).

After hours of tossing and turning, Xiomara got up at 2 o'clock in the morning, deciding that she might as well go and read something. As she made her way down the steps to the North Tower Common Room, she could see shadows from the fireplace dancing up the stair well.

'Oh, dear, Sibyll is still awake.'

Sure enough, Sibyll sat there on a tattered rug on the floor of the large room, cleaning one of her many crystal balls.

"Xiomara, what a tragedy. I saw that tonight's dinner would not go well. I was hoping I would, for once, be wrong." Sibyll put a hand to her forehead, resting her elbow on a nearby end table.

"Oh, my dear, no. It wasn't so bad as all that. We had a nice meal and conversation. Minerva's ever so much more relaxed when not having to be the Headmistress. Yes, we had a minor discussion about my, er, image and about Ms. Granger. And there was the interruption from her Highness, the Pink Toad. But, really, it went well enough." Hooch paused for breath briefly, and then continued, "She is so lovely, and when she laughs, oh, how her neck invites. I am sure I would prefer her hair was kept up, however. Yes, Sibyll. It was a decent evening. I think that even Severus will find it went acceptably enough." Hooch's rambling was a clear indication of her exhaustion. She smiled as she moved further into the room. Her form-fitting t-shirt and shorts left her muscular forearms and tan, firm legs fully exposed to the cool night air.

Sibyll barely glanced at the petite figure prancing around the room in such minimalist garb. She continued to polish the clear orb she currently had resting on her crossed legs. After she placed it on the nearby table, she picked up another next to it, hefting it onto her lap and giving it a slow and steady shine.

While Xiomara searched the bookshelves that lined a full wall, she tripped over one of the outstretched legs of an owl perch. 

"Sorry, Katherine," she mumbled, giving the silvery bird a gentle pat with one hand while massaging her own foot with the other. A flutter of scarves caught her eye, and Xiomara made to turn towards the movement, falling flat on her face while Sibyll began to moan miserably.

"You apologize to the owl, but who apologizes to me? I sit here, with no more of a home than the owl, and yet no one cares. Albus tells me that I must stay within the school grounds, but I cannot do anything for fear of that horrid amphibian."

Xiomara turned towards the bookcase as she stood back up so that her friend wouldn't see as she rolled her eyes. As she did so, she spotted the book she wanted. As she removed the book from the shelf, she turned the book next to it on its spine as a marker. 

"Well, Sibyll, I don't know what to tell you. I dare say that there are a good many students upset that you have been ousted from your teaching position. I do thank you again for setting up the dinner with Minerva." Hooch slipped over to where Sibyll sat and gave her a peck on the temple. Hooch swung the tattered midnight blue leather bound book loosely in one hand as she wearily returned to her room, hoping that her original printing of "Beedle the Bard" would knock her out. Within an hour, she was slumbering, the book draped across her chest.

"I believe that the ladybugs were unhelpful tonight," Professor Trelawney mumbled to herself. "I am ever so grateful for my abilities as a Seer. Obviously my abilities as a matchmaker are not as fully developed as I should have liked." She sighed and continued with her crystal ball cleaning ritual.

As the sun rose later in the morning, Xiomara practically skipped down the stairs. She slipped a note around Katherine's leg and let the owl out one of the stained glass windows. She took the book and tucked it into the pocket of her robes and left the tower, first going downstairs to the now unused Divination classroom, and then gliding down the ladder to the hallway below.

After taking her broom on a few trips around the grounds, enjoying the sun attempting, poorly, to burn its way through the fog, Xiomara strode into the Great Hall for breakfast. 

A monotone voice began, "Ah, yes. While I wish that Minerva would be upset enough with you to have you sacked, I admit that I am impressed by your ability to woo even her. She is in good spirits today. I presume the night was not unpleasant. As my rooms are in the dungeons directly below Minerva's rooms, I have to say that you both exercised an appreciative amount of noise control."

Xiomara smiled tightly, "Severus, the only benefit you would get from having me sacked is that you would get to referee Quidditch matches. And I have to say that last night I went the old fashioned route – no hanky panky on the first date. We ARE talking about Minerva McGonagall. I must win her mind before I can win her heart."

Severus blanched and gave her a blank stare. She winked after a moment, and it seemed to relax him.

"Hooch, you consistently amaze me." And at this statement, Hooch giggled.

After she completed her meal, she made sure to walk by where Umbridge sat.

"Dolores, a word, if I might?"

Professor Umbridge looked startled, but gestured to the empty chair next to her. As she perched on the edge of the offered seat, Hooch leaned forward so that her words would not be overheard.

"Dolores, dear. I must make a confession. Despite my reputation, nothing happened last night with Professor McGonagall. Well, other than a pleasant meal." Dolores raised a thin eyebrow and paused in her tea preparations.

In her high-pitched, girly voice, she simpered, "Madam Hooch, I do not approve of inter-staff romances, so I am glad to hear that one is not currently occurring between the two of you. Nonetheless, your reputation precedes you, and I shall be watching and waiting. If you slip up, I do have authority from the Ministry to ensure that your services are terminated. And Albus Dumbledore cannot protect you in the same way he protects the Seer, Trelawney."

Xiomara set her lips in a pout and lowered her chin, looking at Professor Umbridge from under her eyebrows.

"Oh, dear, Dolores. That is a pity. You see, the purpose of that dinner was to get you to notice me." She paused to point at Dolores' chest. Her finger stopped about an inch above the woman's left breast. Xiomara then moved her finger downwards past the peak of the large bosom. Her finger never touched the cloth. She let it hover momentarily just below the underside of Dolores' breast as the woman sucked in a deep breath. For a split second, both women thought that breast and finger might just meet, and the tension was almost electric. Hooch suddenly brought her finger to the opposite corner of her mouth and wiped away an imaginary tidbit of moisture.

She continued, smirking wickedly, golden eyes gleaming, "It sounds like my plans went awry – for although you have, indeed noticed me, I'm afraid the attention has not been of a positive nature…? Since you don't approve of inter-staff romances, I can only guess that your recent interlude with Filch was simply that – a little fling. And I so enjoy a good fling," she wriggled her eyebrows before continuing. "A woman with standards so low as to shag him, Dolores? Definitely not worthy of my bed." And with that, Xiomara appeared to literally fly out of the room. Professor Umbridge's eyes were mere slits, and her hand hovered over the end of her short wand, which just barely poked out of her cardigan pocket. 

"I would suggest keeping the wand where it is. Madam Hooch was merely attempting to get a rise out of you. If her attempts are unsuccessful she will, eventually, give it up." Snape glared at the pink blob of a woman, his anger barely contained.

Dolores stammered, "But…but…of course." For several moments she seemed to focus on getting her breathing under control and her mind back on track.

Xiomara didn't see Minerva at all during the day, and with lessons and lesson preparations being carefully monitored by Dolores, Xiomara had difficulty finding useful ways to occupy her afternoon in Ministry acceptable ways. 

'I wonder if owling the note to Minerva this morning was wise? Perhaps Katherine was intercepted?' Xiomara fretted for a bit before hopping aboard her broom and putting some distance between her and the ground. She knew better than to return to the tower, as Sibyll was, in all likelihood, enjoying melodramatic misery for any and all visitors.

Indeed, when she did arrive to their common room that evening, her white shirt muddied and the bottom hem of her robes torn in several places and dragging on the floor, she was accosted.

"Oh, the day was horrid. And you were nowhere. I am thinking of leaving Hogwarts despite Albus' pleas."

Xiomara scowled at the frizzy haired woman before her, "Sibyll, you've been drinking too much. There is NO need to talk like that around me. Hallo!! You are a lush. And I am in no mood to deal with such nonsense." She stormed into the kitchen, practically knocking over a small vase with daffodils in it.

"Don't hurt those flowers. They were a gift from Lavender Brown and several other students." Sibyll's outstretched hand was shaky as she attempted to move the vase away from the table's edge.

Xiomara's yellow eyes flashed angrily, "First of all, you are drunk, Sibyll. Just look at the tremor in your hands. Secondly, I am not some twit. I will NOT hurt your precious flowers. From the looks of them, they are from a patch near the edge of the Dark Forest. Which meant the girls risked getting in trouble to obtain them."

Sibyll looked imploringly at her.

Xiomara pointed to the edge of one of the petals, taking a calming breath, "The ones in Madam Sprout's greenhouses have a smoother edge to their petals due to the protected environment. And they honk. If you were to take one of Madam Sprout's flowers out of the greenhouses and plopped it into a vase, it would look lovely, but wouldn't last. Like you, a flower kept within a safe habitat should not leave it. You and I both know that the Death Eaters or the Dementers or any number of evils would descend upon you if you left the safety of Hogwarts. You have made predictions and prophecies that are too valuable, Sibyll." With that, Xiomara took the glass of water she had poured and swept past the other woman and up the stairs to her private rooms. Sibyll stood there for a moment, staring at the vase before carefully picking it up and throwing it against the wall over the fireplace. The shatter of glass made her smile tightly, and for a moment, the fire spluttered as a small amount of water trickled down on it. The flowers lay strewn across the mantle and the floor beyond. She left them there and went up the stairs to her own room.

The next couple of days fared no better for Xiomara. She had verified that Katherine had delivered the note to Minerva without interference. Nonetheless, the time went by without reply. She did not want to be too aggressive in her pursuit. And, there was the fact that Sibyll shared with her during this waiting game a disturbing prediction.

'Dolores will be Head of Hogwarts before the term is complete, Xiomara. I have had dreams foretelling it. Albus will leave Minerva and myself unprotected. One or both of us will face grave danger. I am certain of this.' Sibyll had gripped both of Xiomara's hands in her own and squeezed them tightly as she said all this. She removed her glasses afterwards and peered at the short, spiky-haired woman with grave intensity and not a little fear.

On Friday morning, Xiomara walked past the Great Hall, determined not to enter. She could not face the idea of sitting so close to Minerva during breakfast and act as if nothing was bothering her. She went, instead, to the Staff Lounge and had a quiet spot of tea with Professor Flitwick who regularly preferred his breakfast in silent solitude. After he rose to go to his first class, she continued to stare off, glassy-eyed, out the window. March breezes were knocking around the newly blossoming tree leaves, and there were definite signs that the sky was planning to drop buckets of rain at any moment. 

With a sigh, she rose and left the room, making her way towards the greenhouses.

'If Pomona has some catnip plants, perhaps…'

As Xiomara exited through a door leading outside, she felt a tug on her robes. She stopped short and turned to see Ginny Weasley looking more than a little nervous.

"What is it, dear?"

"Well, it doesn't make sense. But she sounded insistent." Ginny wrung her hands, and then continued, "She was insistent. It just makes no sense."

From off to one side, Hermione approached, "Ginny. Spit it out." Ginny looked more nervous than ever. Madam Hooch rested a hand on the redhead's shoulder.

"Take a breath. Gather your thoughts. Tell me when you are ready." Madam Hooch never ceased to be amazed at the fact that the Weasley children were all such tightly wound bundles of energy. Ginny didn't look all that calmed, so with a smile, the instructor switched gears.

"Close your eyes, Ginerva. You are on the Quidditch pitch, quaffle under one arm. One of the hoops is momentarily unguarded, so you have a clean shot. You take another deep breath, and during that moment between inhalation and exhalation, you make the toss. The quaffle glides through the goal without a hitch. You exhale, all tension gone." She paused, "Now open your eyes, dear, and let's start over again." 

Ginny smiled up at Xiomara, "Professor McGonagall stopped me this morning on my way from the Common Room to breakfast. She told me to give you a message, but that it wouldn't make sense. And, it doesn't." Ginny smiled shyly.

Madam Hooch's breath caught at the thought of a message from Minerva.

"She said to tell you, and I quote, 'Miss Weasley needs private flying lessons tonight of the same sort as the last time.'" Ginny tilted her head a bit as she did an astoundingly realistic imitation of her Head of House's voice.

Xiomara's lips twitched in a small smile, "I see." Her mind began dancing around with delight that Minerva, indeed, wanted to see her again.

"But what does she mean? I haven't ever had private flying lessons before, Madam Hooch. I don't get it."

Xiomara returned to earth. "Hmm? Oh. That's actually not a bad idea, Ginny. Would you like extra lessons?" She fluffed her spikes of hair as she contemplated her own offer.

Ginny Weasley's eyes lit up, "Would I ever!"

Madam Hooch's spirits lifted that a student had interest in her subject matter.

"Fine then. Let's start next week. I will talk to Minerva about your current course load to figure out a schedule for these lessons. Today is Friday, so, by Monday, please come up with a list of any particular areas related to flying or Quidditch in particular, that you have great interest in working to improve. I will gladly incorporate reasonable requests into our sessions." Her eyes alighted on Hermione.

"Miss Granger. Would you like to be included, dear?" The curly-haired young lady looked shocked. Xiomara was struck with an evil idea that she couldn't help but test out.

"Professor McGonagall, being a House Cup winning Seeker in her own day will undoubtedly be delighted that one or both of you are interested in extra lessons. I dare say she will want to join us on occasion." She tightly pinched her lips, biting down on them to hold back her own laughter. Sure enough, Hermione's features brightened.

"Well, I might be interested in the lessons if Professor McGonagall thinks it important."

"I understand. Well, girls, I don't want you to be late for classes. Dolores Umbridge," Madam Hooch coughed, "will be surely put us all in detention if you don't get a move on." She shooed the girls off, then stood for a moment watching as a couple of birds twittered by. Shortly, she continued on her path to the greenhouses in her usually brisk stride.

As Ginny and Hermione scurried along the hallway to their respective classes, Ginny came to a halt.

"Did you see that?"

Hermione looked at her exasperatingly. "See what?" She grabbed Ginny by the elbow and thrust her in the direction of the stairs down to the dungeons and Ginny's Potions class.

Ginny stopped at the top step, looking back at Hermione, "How happy Madam Hooch looked when I gave her the message? I think she has a soft spot for Professor McGonagall."

Hermione sighed, tucked a bit of hair behind her ear, "Of course she has a soft spot for Professor McGonagall. She's pretty much the only female over the age of 17 here at Hogwarts that Hooch hasn't tried to shag yet."

Ginny giggled, "You believe all that rot? I certainly don't. She's all talk. Fred and George have told me all about her and what she's really like. She has been a serious contributor to their mail order business, you know. I do think she really does have a thing for McGonagall, though. And…" Ginny giggled again, "I have an absolutely marvelous idea—now that I think about it. I have to find Fred and George at lunch, so I won't see you until later today, okay?" With that, Ginny Weasley flipped her shoulder length red hair over a shoulder and skipped down the stairs, leaving Hermione to stare after her, completely bewildered.


	4. Love Potion 3

_A/N: As usual, the Earth revolves around the sun and I do NOT own the Harry Potter characters. LOL Last chapter focused on Xiomara a good bit (Why not? She's hot). This chappy, Minerva gets brought back in. BTW – please do hit the Submit Review at the end of this chapter and give feedback. It is delightful to know it is being read (and to hear what can be improved upon)._

Early Thursday evening, as Minerva graded papers, she dozed off, her head coming to rest on the stack of parchments.

She was gently stirred awake by warm hands gently massaging the tops of her shoulders. Even through her robes, the pressure and heat had immediate effect. She sat up in her chair. Over the next few minutes, the motions became quite firm, kneading the tension from her spine and shoulder blades before starting in on her neck.

"Mmph." She couldn't contain her pleasure.

A soft whisper made her left ear tickle with delight, "I thought you didn't much like being touched or having people in your personal space, Minnie. How delicious to finally be able to enjoy the feel of you." Then, she felt her chair spin slowly around, and a gentle weight settle itself in her lap. The feeling of legs draped around her hips warmed her and her breath caught. She shifted slightly and felt the small body lean forwards into her. As arms encircled her neck, Minerva attempted to open her eyes, but her lids felt so very heavy. She felt as a firm abdomen momentarily pressed against her own soft belly and then feather-light lips fell along the right side of her jaw and down under her chin.

"Oh-hmm," she hummed, stretching her neck to allow greater access. One hand moved from around her neck, and a finger traced from below her earlobe down the side of her neck to her collarbone. She had to concentrate on it, as the finger just barely made contact with her skin as it moved. Now it trailed forward, just above the collar of her gown, stopping at the notch at the top of her breastbone. It teased gently at the zipper pull that rested there.

"Mara. Yes." And then her eyes could open. And did. And she was instantly regretting it. For a few moments, Minerva sat in the darkening room, her head resting on the desk, her mind reorienting her to the surroundings.

It had been SO real.

Gently rubbing her cheek where a couple of curled parchments had left creases against her skin, she rose. With a flick of her wand Minerva caused candles throughout her rooms to come to life, the reflection of the flames in the windows difficult to differentiate from the same oranges and yellows being emitted by the setting sun.

Pouring herself a cup of tea and stretching her stiff neck, she returned to her desk. Before tearing in to the next student essay on the advantages and disadvantages of switching spells, she paused to think about her dream and Xiomara Hooch.

'I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give her a chance,' and with that, Minerva determined she would let the object of her affection know in the morning that a 2nd date would be acceptable. It had been a few weeks now, and if she didn't let Xiomara know she was interested soon, who knows which 7th year student would be next on Hooch's list. Minerva took a contented sip of her tea, feeling remarkably happy.

For the first night since Umbridge's arrival, Professor McGonagall slept soundly. Allowing herself the opportunity to pursue the relationship she had been wanting for so long had given her a new found sense of peace.

As the sky began to lighten, Minerva awoke. She showered, dressed quickly, and was walking into the Gryffindor tower in less than ½ hour. The boys' dormitory was filled with the sounds of several snoring teen and pre-teen boys. There was also the smell of dank, lived-in sweat. There were piles of dirty clothes that spread out from under beds in an attempt to take over every inch of floor space. These articles of clothing contributed to the overall ambiance of a cave. Minerva reminded herself that the sounds and smells were more powerful for her because of her cat senses. Nonetheless, she walked a little more rigidly, and moved quickly, attempting not to nose breathe for the duration of her tour through their rooms.

'_Fred and George Weasley would have every teenage boy's mother queued up for kilometers to buy a spell, charm, or magical item that would treat and prevent such odors.'_

She could not get out of there soon enough. After a long pause in the Gryffindor Common room to enjoy the fresher air and to make a mental note to use a bubblehead charm next time, she proceeded up into the girls' dormitory. Here, she was assaulted by a multitude of perfumes, scented candles, and the smells of various hair products. While, like the boys' rooms, there were piles of clothes under beds, there did not appear to be the same negative odors floating from these items. The snores were less pronounced, and there were a few sounds of girls murmuring in their sleep.

She smiled at the somnolent forms, and then returned to the Common Rooms. Here, she spotted a knit hat poking out from behind a chair. She picked it up. As she did so, she saw another - partially hidden under the same chair.

'_Whomever could these fit? Human heads are too big for these.'_ And then she realized with a pang, _'Elves. House elves. Hermione Granger. Who else besides Miss Granger would be putting out hats for the creatures? Who else besides GRANGER was hell bent on knitting of late?'_ Minerva shook her head. Then she realized that there were bigger things to be concerned about - namely the slow takeover of Hogwarts by Dolores Umbridge and the Ministry. And, oh, yes, the nagging little problem that You-Know-Who had returned. She sank down in one of the chairs, suddenly feeling momentarily overwhelmed.

A little later, Minerva was pulled back to the here and now of student life. Hermione and Ginny stood to either side of the seated Deputy Headmistress, each gently shaking a shoulder.

"Professor?" Hermione was concerned by the glassy-eyed stare of Professor McGonagall.

"Good morning, girls. Another beautiful spring day, is it not?" Minerva's bright green eyes met the concerned brown ones of her favorite student.

"Yes. Professor. Tomorrow is the first official day of spring."

"Well, then. I certainly hope that you and your fellow students have plans to take advantage of it falling on a weekend this year. Maybe get outside and enjoy the fresh air. I know that the Room of Requirement has the ability to provide you with a window as needed, but it cannot take the place of being outside." Minerva's eyes twinkled as she thought how nice it would be to spend some time out by the lake with Madam Hooch.

Both girls gasped at her statement about the Room of Requirement.

"Yes, I am more than aware of your goings on." Minerva's lips twitched upwards at the corners as she watched Hermione's look of concern. She then captured a glimpse of Ginny and an idea hit her.

"Miss Weasley. I need you to deliver a message to Madam Hooch this morning."

After Ginny promised her Head of House that she would, indeed, deliver the message, Minerva set off to the Great Hall for breakfast, a slight bounce in her step. She was only slightly saddened not to see Xiomara there, but since the Flight Instructor was known to frequently skip formal meals in the Great Hall, she didn't give it much thought.

During the break between afternoon classes, she was surprised to see Hermione and Ginny standing before her desk. Taking a sip of her tea before addressing them, she gave them both a critical once over.

"How may I help you?" Minerva's eyes had cloud over as she realized that maybe something happened when Ginny delivered the message to Madam Hooch. Such a quick response couldn't be a good sign.

Ginny placed a small red cardboard box on her Professor's desk, "Some dark chocolate covered ginger newts."

Minerva raised an eyebrow and adjusted her teacup on its saucer. Perhaps all was well, after all.

"Really? Why is that?"

Ginny glanced at Hermione and took a deep breath, "We were in the kitchens talking to one of the House elves, and they gave some to us to try out. A new recipe, I suppose. Anyway, Hermione remembered how much you like the regular version, so I asked if we could bring a few of these chocolate ones to you. They really are quite good."

Their professor looked over her glasses at the girls, focusing her gaze on Hermione, as she slid the box closer and opened it. Hermione appeared to have difficulty holding her gaze. Minerva looked down and folded back the red and gold striped tissue paper to reveal about 4 large chocolate treats. Her stomach seemed to awaken and made a sudden, audible growl.

Minerva blushed faintly, and offered the box to the girls. Hermione blanched and took a step back. Ginny smiled widely while declining.

"We've had some already, Professor. Those are for you." Minerva had a sudden sinking feeling and it was NOT related to her appetite. She took one of the candies out of the box and nibbled at it timidly, wondering what was the Weasley girl up to. Professor McGonagall had very little trust in any of the Weasleys, parents included.

"Mmm. Quite good, girls. I shall have to pop by the kitchen later to give my thanks." She glanced at Hermione; sure the girl would be pleased by her Professor's attempt to recognize the handiwork of the house elves.

Hermione seemed frozen, but Ginny cried sharply, "Oh, no. No. Really, we are going back momentarily to get a book Hermione forgot there. We'll give them your message." Ginny kicked Hermione and moved towards the door. The large desk that stood between them and Minerva had obscured the older woman's view, so she did not notice the redhead's assault on her best friend's shins.

Just as the girls were about out of the room, Minerva's voice called after them, "Miss Weasley?"

Ginny popped her head back in the room, "Yes, Professor?"

Minerva rose from her chair and made her way over towards the door.

In a low voice, she queried, "I take it that things went well this morning, then?" Ginny nodded her ascent, and Minerva gave her a bright smile.

"Very well." As Minerva turned back to her desk, she realized she was still holding onto a treat. She popped the whole thing in her mouth and chewed it thoughtfully. As she sat and reached for her quill, she saw some of the chocolate had melted on her fingertips, so she carefully licked it off. She failed to notice Ginny was still watching from the doorway.

Ginny joined Hermione in the hallway a moment later, smiling wickedly.

"I didn't like doing that, Ginny." Hermione looked a bit cross at her friend.

"Oh, it won't hurt. Fred and George used their Love Potion #3 chocolate on plenty of others already. It's perfectly safe. Besides," Ginny patted Hermione's back, "she won't notice a thing if she DOESN'T like Madam Hooch. It only works properly if there is something there to begin with."

"Well, I still don't have to like it. There always seems to be some sort of unplanned side effects to their work. And Professor McGonagall deserves better than Madam Hooch. I need to get to Potions now – I can't skive off classes so close to OWLs, you know." With that, Hermione turned from Ginny and walked off down the hallway. Ginny Weasley stood there a moment longer, watching Hermione stomp off.

That evening, Minerva made her way up a moving staircase to the 7th floor. As soon as she hit the landing, she was immediately approached by Luna Lovegood.

"Professor Snape said to meet him in Dumbledore's office. He is such a sad man."

"Who is a sad man, child? Professor Snape or Dumbledore?" Minerva looked down her nose at the odd Ravenclaw girl.

"Professor Snape, of course. Father says still waters run deep whenever I talk about Professor Snape. But, I don't see the Professor swimming, or running deep into anything for that matter." Luna walked off, Professor McGonagall staring after her.

With a sigh, she continued on towards the patio.

Hooch stood against the railing, looking out to the grounds beyond. She was dressed in long dark blue shirt paired with a soft grey skirt that almost brushed the slate flooring. Between the two women, there was a small round table set up just as the last time. Upon a second glance, though, the vase of tulips had been replaced with one of rather large marigolds, which Minerva found to be an interesting choice.

"Hem, hem," she now murmured from the doorway. She enjoyed watching as Xiomara's back immediately stiffened. After several long, silent seconds, Xiomara turned to face her. Immediately, both broke into grins. The smaller woman moved closer and without thinking, reached out to tickle Minerva.

"That was a good fright," Xiomara stated. Minerva, for a brief moment, enjoyed the feeling of fingers playing along her ribs. Xiomara seemed to realize what she was doing and pulled her hands back, as if slapped.

"Erm, sorry about that," she blushed.

Minerva opened her eyes with a look of shock, as she hadn't realized she had shut them until the wonderful sensation of being touched by Xiomara had disappeared. Xiomara's golden eyes seemed to be glowing back at her.

"Actually, my dear, that was quite enjoyable. However," Minerva, with heavy heart, now avoided looking into the yellow eyes before her, "I regret to inform you that I've just been summoned to Albus' office. I'm quite sure that it will be a short meeting about something trivial, since it is impromptu. However, if I don't respond, I'm sure to be questioned at length about it later and…" here Minerva let the words drop off.

"I understand, Minnie. Shall I hold dinner until you return or shall we reschedule?" Xiomara was barely whispering.

"Please hold it. That is, if you don't mind." Minerva felt a pang of guilt as she turned to leave. She simply could not bring herself to look at Madam Hooch for fear her heart would break. She swept into the cold, damp castle. With a quiet fury at the absolutely horrible way the evening was playing out, Minerva moved through the hallways with long strides. Within moments she was in the Headmaster's office.

Albus sat at his desk, writing. Professor Snape stood at a window, staring out at the darkening sky. Minerva was, by this point, building a full steam of anger at these silly men for interrupting her plans for the evening. Her irritation rose now to the surface as she realized she had been torn away for what was likely some petty argument involving Harry Potter. She slammed the door shut, the sound drowning out the rhythmic beat of Severus' foot tapping and the irritating scratching of Albus' quill on parchment.

Professor Snape whirled around, his long, lightweight cloak floating up about his feet. Albus continued with his writing.

"Ah, Professor McGonagall. I did not realize that the trademark Griffindor courage meant bravely stealing ingredients from the my lab."

"Severus. A pleasure to see you, I'm sure. While I realize you have been using legilimency on Potter, understand that I have no intention of using it on you." She paused and narrowed her eyes with a small sigh, "Please explain your comments."

Severus slipped a greasy strand of hair behind an ear. As this was not the first time she had turned her wrath on him, he was not at all bothered by it.

"The Weasley twins have stolen items from my potions store room, Minerva. I am wondering what you intend to do about it. Unless, of course, you are benefiting financially from their business ventures…"

Straightening her spine, and prepared to unleash the full force of her Scottish wrath and indignation upon him, Minerva was cut off.

"Severus, Severus. Let's not let tempers flare." Albus waved a placating hand at his Potions Master.

"Minerva, it seems that a couple of items were removed from the Potions lab, and Severus is sure that Fred and George Weasley are behind it – he caught them attempting to replace a bit of, of --,"

"Mermaid sweat," Severus snapped.

"—Mermaid sweat. He caught them attempting to return a bottle this morning." Albus smiled benignly over his half moon glasses, his gaze directed at Fawkes while stroking his beard absentmindedly.

"How many days of detention would you like them to serve, Severus?"

Professor Snape squinted beady-eyed at Minerva and Albus snuck a peek at her, surprise momentarily passing over his face. She wanted to cut to the chase and get back to the balcony.

"Seven," he hissed.

"Seven?! That seems a bit much. How about four?"

"Seven. Anything less, for a Weasley, and Umbridge will invoke the ability to assert her own punishment."

With a sigh, Professor McGonagall nodded, "Fine. Since they have already been banned from Quidditch, I don't see there being a conflict with their schedules. Shall they start tomorrow?"

"That will do."

Albus nodded his pleasure at their amicability. The two gentlemen pulled Minerva into further discussion on how she felt Firenze was doing in Divination and whether Professor Trelawney was able to continue to steer clear of Umbridge within the castle grounds. Despite an occasional nagging feeling, Minerva participated fully in the conversation.

As the men moved on to the topic of whether Professor Grubbly-Plank could be brought back when Hagrid was inevitably sacked, Minerva sighed. She had already wasted too much time in useless chatter with them and now she simply could not suffer through any more of their trivial talk.

'_Just because they don't have dates, doesn't mean I don't,'_ she thought bitterly.

"If you don't mind, I have other business to attend to this evening," Professor McGonagall's sharp voice cut in.

Albus nodded and Severus spoke with a bit more courtesy than usual, "Before you go, do you have the latest copy of 'Transfiguration Monthly'? There is a research article on the use of a new version of Polyjuice Potion. I'd like to read it."

"Yes, I'll bring it to breakfast in the morning."

"Actually, I would like to read it tonight, if you don't mind, Minerva." The Deputy Headmistress hitched up an eyebrow at Severus' unusual attempt at politeness, while attempting to hold back her own renewed sense of irritation. This was going to further delay her return to the 7th floor.

"Not a problem. It's on my desk. Is that all, Albus?" Dumbledore nodded slightly, already turning his attention to the parchment in front of him. With that, Minerva and Severus made their way downstairs to the Transfiguration Professor's office.

Upon entering the room, Minerva slid the requested magazine out from under a pile of rolled parchments on her desk.

"Here you are. Be sure to clean it before you return it, Severus. I'm not as severe as Irma Pince about the care of periodicals, but neither am I as lackadaisical as Hagrid." As he took the proffered magazine from her, she noticed the small red box she had forgotten on her desk earlier. She watched him turn to go, and then neatly reached out for the box, tucking it into the pocket of her robes before heading up to the 7th floor balcony. Torches were coming to life as she went, a sign that darkness was descending.

Indeed, when she arrived at her destination, she thought she might be alone. With a sigh, she plopped down in one of the chairs at the table, grateful that Xiomara hadn't cleared everything out yet. Feeling utterly sorry for herself, Minerva pulled the small box from her robe pocket and proceeded to tuck away 2 of the 3 remaining candies. Once she had consumed the chocolate treats, she paused to study the scene a bit more. Although there was a full moon rising, she flicked her wand to light the single candle in the center of the table. At this point, she realized there were a couple of covered dishes sitting on the side table nearby. She stood slightly and reached to pull one over to rest in front of her. Lifting the lid, she discovered that Hooch had prepared some salmon with rice and broccoli and then had placed the covers and warming charms over the plates. Minerva replaced the lid on the dish before her and wiped the escaping steam from her glasses with a handkerchief she kept tucked up her sleeve.

"Hem, hem." She practically jumped out of her skin, and turned in her chair, her blood boiling over at the thought of the High Inquisitor's presence.

'_Oh, bloody hell. What a delightful way to polish off the evening.'_

Madam Hooch stood smirking, just behind her.

"You evil woman, Rolanda, er, I mean Xiomara Hooch!," she cried out and swatted at the shorter woman's nearest leg.

While Hooch giggled, Minerva stood, still feeling irritable at their date having been ruined.

"I can't believe you fell for it when you had just pulled the same joke on me earlier," Xiomara spluttered through her laughter.

"Yes, well. You are still a twit. This evening has not gone to plan and I was obviously preoccupied." Minerva could feel her own voice relaxing even as she spoke. Madam Hooch smiled warmly at her in the semi-darkness.

Then, seeing the full moon over Minerva's shoulder, she nodded her head in that direction and raised her hand to point it out.

"Worm moon," Minerva noted as she turned to look at what Xiomara was referring to.

"You know why it is called that, don't you?"

"No, I don't. Aurora Sinistra was saying something about it earlier in the Staff rooms."

Xiomara studied the older woman's face, "Well, then, I won't bore you. I mean dinner is waiting."

As Xiomara made to turn towards the table, Minerva grasped her wrist and pulled her back around. She tentatively placed her arm across Xiomara's shoulder while continuing to gaze upon the moon.

"Tell me. Tell me about the Worm moon."

With a deep breath, Xiomara tried to focus her thoughts. _'Has Minerva McGonagall just put her arm around me?' _

"Well, as usually there has been some decent rain by this point in the year, this first full moon of the season brings out the worms." Here, Hooch paused and looked askance at Minerva before continuing.

Her voice wavered, "Of course, with the worms also come the rodents and owls and all manner of winged things. With tomorrow being the first day of spring, tonight should be a great kicking off of mating season for most bird species. Its truly wonderful to see."

She realized what she had just said (_'Have I just said it was fun to watch birds mate?'_), ducked her head and made to step away. Instead, Minerva gripped her shoulder even more tightly, holding Hooch in place.

"Hold on." Minerva eased her grip so that the younger woman could turn to partly face her. "Let's enjoy the moment." So, they stood there, staring out at the moon as its light gently kissed along the treetops of the Forbidden Forest. A few birds, indeed, could be spotted, moving as winged shadows across the grounds. Xiomara attempted to wrap her head around the fact that Minerva was so unusually demonstrative. It was hard for her to think, however, as the taller woman kept her arm across her shoulder and was rhythmically running her fingers up and down her deltoid in a gentle caress.

"Are you hungry, Minnie? Did you see dinner?"

Minerva chuckled and, as Xiomara turned out of the embrace, gently teased her fingers through short grey hair, tousling it slightly.

With a little tremor, Xiomara seated Minerva and then settled into the seat across from her. She removed the covers from both of their plates, and they simultaneously deeply inhaled the wonderful fragrance of the lemon dill sauce on the salmon.

"May I get you a glass of pumpkin juice or tea or…?"

With a wide smile, Minerva responded, "I wouldn't mind that Muggle wine from last time, the Lamborghini? A very, very large glass of it." She reached across the table and gave Hooch's hand a momentary squeeze.

"Ferrari, Minnie. Tell you what, though. Let's go with something different tonight. I was thinking of sparkling cider." Minerva's continued acts of endearment were a bit out of character and causing Xiomara concern. During their previous dinner, Minerva had mentioned she was not much into the Muggle wines. This request for a 'very, very large glass of it,' made her suspicious. Something was up and she did not want the potential for alcohol to further affect McGonagall's personality.

Minerva frowned, her head tilted to the side, "What is wrong with wine, Ro--Xiomara?"

"Nothing. I, I just don't want you to feel you need a large glass of it to enjoy my company," she fibbed.

"Not at all. I'm just thinking of unwinding from the stress of the past few weeks."

"Ah," they looked into each other's eyes. When Minerva responded, her Scottish brogue was a bit more pronounced.

"You have a point. The wine is unnecessary. Your company is thoroughly enjoyable in and of itself." Minerva reached out and patted her dinner mate's left forearm, which was resting on the table. At that same moment, Xiomara had in her right hand a fork full of rice, ready to raise it to her mouth. Rice scattered across the tabletop, and both women chuckled.

For several moments, they tucked in to the food, silently savoring it. Then, between bites, the women began to discuss, occasionally with passion and volume, their favorite Quidditch teams and players. As Xiomara cleared away their dishes, Minerva changed the subject.

"Tell me more about your bird watching interests."

Xiomara moved to nervously tug at her tie before realizing that it wasn't there. She had changed before dinner into a sapphire blue oversized oxford, the top couple of buttons undone, her tan neck peeking through. Since the tie wasn't there to play with, she nervously pinched the top of the shirt closed for a second.

"Well, the bird talk is a bit involved. Perhaps another time, as it is growing late."

Minerva studied her in quiet contemplation, and then stated, "Okay. We do have enough time for one last cup of tea, I hope."

"Cup of tea?"

"Yes, that sounds delightful," Minerva sighed. She studied Hooch's back while she stood at the side table preparing cups of the hot beverage.

"Here you go," Hooch said, leaning over slightly.

Minerva caught a glimpse of the other's cleavage and a hint of a dark blue (or was it black?) bra, and her breath caught.

"Galleon for your thoughts, Minerva," Madam Hooch stated as she sat on the arm of her own chair and slid into it so she was sideways. Minerva was amused that she seemed so practiced at the maneuver – her tea didn't slosh through the movement. Hooch's legs were draped over the arm of the chair and kicking the air rhythmically.

"Hmm? Oh." Minerva's face reddened for a brief moment. _'I am NOT telling her that I was ogling her chest.'_ She took a sip of tea, then remembered the box in her pocket.

"Oh, here. Try a bite of this treat with your tea. They are positively delicious." Minerva slid the box out and popped open the lid with one hand, holding it out for Xiomara. The younger woman reached in and seemed to jump when she removed half of the ginger-based treat.

"What exactly is this?" Hooch queried, holding the candy in front of her with a wary eye.

"Dark chocolate ginger newt. Hermione and Ginny brought them by earlier today," Minerva explained. She pulled out the remaining half piece and ate it in one gulp.

"Mmm," she closed her eyes, enjoying the flavor of chocolate and ginger mingling on her tongue.

"Here, love. Have this one, too. Its quite pleasurable just watching you eat them. In fact," Minerva thought Hooch might be blushing, but it was hard to tell in the darkness, "I feel a bit like a Peeping Tom. Besides, while dark chocolate is truly a pleasure, I find ginger to be a bit nasty."

Minerva smiled wryly and took back the candy that Hooch handed her. She popped the candy into her mouth and savored it. She hadn't realized it, but she had closed her eyes again while chewing. When she opened them again, she saw Hooch sucking warm, melted chocolate from a finger. She wondered what it would be like to have Hooch's fingers in her mouth, and with that thought swimming in her mind, she reached out and pulled the woman's hand towards her own lips. She drew Xiomara's chocolate-coated thumb into her mouth and sucked it clean. Just as Minerva was about to swallow, her eyes met Xiomara's and she began to choke wildly.

'_What am I doing?!'_

Xiomara was up in a flash and before she knew it, Minerva felt a warm breath against her neck and arms wrapping around her torso, pulling her up out of the chair. Xiomara was about to dig a fist into the taller woman's upper abdomen, pressing herself into Minerva's back so that she might keep her short arms to stay around her. When Minerva felt Xiomara's breasts and torso pressed against her, she became filled with flashbacks of the dream from the previous evening. Her head spun, and a small bit of candy flew from her mouth and her choking ceased.

Instantly, Xiomara dropped her arms from around her and stepped around to face Minerva and glimpse her face.

"Looks like you cleared it. Can you talk?" Minerva was struck by the look of concern lining her companion's face. And then she reached out, pulling Hooch's mouth to her own with both hands.

"Shhh. Kiss me," she whispered as she brought her thin lips firmly to Xiomara's. After a moment, she eased up a bit, realizing she was being a bit forceful. Xiomara began to slowly, gently kiss her way from one corner of Minerva's mouth to the other. Minerva moaned and bit Xiomara's lower lip a bit harshly.

"Oww." Minerva took advantage of Madam Hooch's exclamation and slipped her tongue into the other's mouth. Immediately, Hooch pulled back.

"Let's slow it down a bit, Minnie," the smaller woman spoke in a strangled whisper as she rested her head against McGonagall's shoulder. The tickle of the warm breath against her neck and chest sent Minerva's head spinning. She must have lost her balance, because the next thing she knew, she was being assisted back down into a chair. Xiomara knelt at her feet, her hands resting firmly on Minerva's knees.

"Just breathe. I think we got going a bit too fast for both of us, dear." Minerva tried to focus her vision, and sat there for several minutes gathering herself together.

"Ro-Xiomara, what in Merlin's beard were you doing?"

"Excuse me?"

"Hugging me from behind like that? I was choking!"

Xiomara chuckled a little. Seeing the confusion on Minerva's face, her laughter deepened.

"I've told you, Minerva," she spoke between peels of laughter, "my mother…was a…Muggle. I was…attempting…a Muggle remedy."

"Well, seems a bit more erotic than functional, if you ask me. I thought you were feeling me up."

Xiomara's chortle continued. Minerva felt warmed by it and began to laugh, too. After a minute, they were both gasping for breath, and another moment or two passed before they were both able to breathe normally again, wiping tears from their eyes.

"Perhaps we had better call it a night." Xiomara eventually stated.

With that, she assisted Minerva, who was began to giggle anew, to stand, and walked with her to the Gryffindor tower to complete evening rounds.

"I'll check one of the dorms, if you like," Xiomara smiled.

"Oh, you don't need to," Minerva grinned widely. She was amazed at how absolutely gorgeous Xiomara was.

"I really don't mind," her companion stated as they approached the Fat Lady. "In fact, if you like, I'll take the boys' side. Since Harry, Fred, and George have been banned from Quidditch, I would savor the chance to say 'hello' if they aren't already asleep."

Minerva provided the appropriate password and they entered the Common Room. There were Harry, Ron, and Hermione revising for their upcoming OWLs.

"Good evening," Xiomara spoke.

Harry looked up glumly, while Ron barely glanced away from his homework, dark ink spots sprinkled amongst his freckles.

Hermione stared at the women for long moments before speaking, "Good evening, Professor McGonagall." Xiomara tilted her head and studied Hermione with growing discontent.

"Madam Hooch," Hermione stated with a short nod before turning back to her studies with a slight sideways glance.

"Miss Granger, I want to thank you again for those candies," Professor McGonagall smiled. As Hermione lifted her eyes once again to look at her, Minerva felt the color rise to her cheeks. "And I suppose I ought to check in with Miss Weasley as well. Those chocolate covered ginger newts were delicious." With considerable speed, Minerva swept up towards the girls' dormitories, wondering if Hermione had figured out what was going on between her and Madam Hooch.

Xiomara followed Minerva with her eyes, then reached out and patted Harry's shoulder. She bent near his ear and stated, "Not to worry, young man. Professor Trelawney believes that although Umbridge will get much worse soon, she will ultimately be gone before term's end. I, for one, believe you will be back on the Pitch by next year." Here, she gently gave Harry's upper back a quick circular rubbing motion followed by a pat, then went up the stairs towards the boy's dormitory. She glanced back down the stairs to see Harry staring up at her, cautious hope reflected in his eyes. She gave him a small smile and a wink and rounded the corner.

The smell of teen boys hit her head on and she momentarily felt like she had walked into a Quidditch locker room. A men's Quidditch locker room, to be exact. With speed, she peeked in the various rooms. All was quiet. Coming upon the last room at the end of the hallway, she found Fred and George slipping various boxes under their beds.

"Gentlemen," Xiomara threw out in a stern voice. They both jumped, Fred smacking his head against part of his bed frame.

Their eyes lit up, however, and grins plastered their faces as they saw her.

George wriggled his eyebrows as Fred spoke, "Get it on with any young ladies?"

"Interesting you should ask," she smiled back. She massaged the side of her neck with her right hand, lost in thought.

'_I wonder why students always fall into the belief I am after the young women.'_

"Ginny indicated you might like to try out our love potion #3," George smirked.

"Indeed. I recall you telling me last month that love potion #2 was pretty potent. What makes #3 special?"

"Its made to be subtle, and work strictly to reduce inhibitions," Fred stated.

"But if there aren't any amorous feelings between you and the intended lady friend, then all it does is make it easier to get along," George added.

She nodded absentmindedly, _'It wouldn't do to try any of these on Minerva.'_

"Ginny picked some up on your behalf just this morning. A whole batch that we had mixed into chocolate. Said it was for a young lady who was attracted to you, but had been playing a bit coy," Fred pushed on.

"Loony Lovegood a good snogger, Madam Hooch?"

Her eyes widened at this query. Now Minerva's behavior was making sense. And the comments Minnie had made about the chocolate ginger newts from Ginny and Hermione….

Xiomara paused before replying to the twins, thinking about how she might exact her revenge upon them.

"Actually, Miss Lovegood was not the lady in question. But, yes, the potion was used in some dark chocolate ginger newts and it worked marvelously."

"It works especially well, don't you think?" Fred responded. "But, if it wasn't Lovegood, who was it?"

"Who do you know that absolutely lives on ginger newts?" She smiled and winked.

"Besides old McGonagall?"

"No 'besides' gentlemen. And she is not too old for me."

Both Fred and George seemed to shiver for a moment.

She suddenly switched gears, "Oh, I completely forgot what I came up here to tell you. There is a storefront coming available in another week just off Daigon Alley. Large back storage room and the second and third floors house a fairly nice living space. I've already told Chuck, Charles Pince, that is, to hold it for me. With Umbridge running amok, it will have to be after the end of term in a couple of months, before you can see it." Her eyes gleamed. "Not to worry, though. Chuck loves money the way his sister loves books in the library down the hall. That is to say, obsessively. Chuck knows the two of you will bring in money hand over fist. He's holding the shop for me for practically nothing in the hopes the two of you will lease it."

The twins rushed at her in a crushing embrace.

"Please, please boys. I am always glad to help such wonderful talent to grow. I think it wise to invest in your enterprise now, before you really take off. Now, let go of me before you mess up my fabulous hairdo."

The twins stepped back, Fred chuckling and George giving her a playful punch on the arm. She winked and left them.

"Madam Hooch, we're not so sure about your taste in women, but we are glad in your taste in entrepreneurial adventures."

Xiomara wasn't sure which of them had said that, but it definitely put a saunter in her step as she traveled back down the stairs. When she returned to the Gryffindor common room, none of the students looked up from their work. Minerva was standing by the exit, waiting expectantly.

They stepped out of the portrait into the hallway, and once Minerva was sure that no one was in sight, she grasped Xiomara's hand and pulled it to her lips. She kissed the inside of Madam Hooch's wrist and then her palm before letting their clasped hands fall to her side. She pulled the gob smacked Quidditch referee along beside her as she made long strides down the moving staircases.

"Minerva, it is getting late. I suggest we consider calling it a night."

"My thoughts exactly," Minerva whispered, squeezing Xiomara's hand in her own.

'_Oh, dear, how am I going to get through this? I very well can't take advantage of her if she has a Weasley love potion on board.'_

They continued in silence, Minerva anxious to play out her lust-filled fantasies and Xiomara frantically thinking of a way out.

As the women approached the door to Professor McGonagall's office and private rooms beyond, Xiomara stopped cold. She reached out her other hand, and clasping Minerva's hands in her own, faced the taller woman.

"Minnie, I think we ought to wait until we've got another date or two under our belts before we go any further. With the toad on the prowl, we need to keep a low profile."

Minerva stared at her, absolute shock and disbelief written across her face.

"I was wondering if you would like to go to Daigon Alley with me next weekend? I am to pick up the trophies and ribbons for the graduation of the 7th years. I would really love your company. Please, Minnie. Do say you'll go?" Xiomara pleaded.

"Well, I'll go. But on condition you come in for just a moment."

Xiomara hesitated.

"I don't want to say goodnight here in the hallway," Minerva spat.

Xiomara's eyes widened. She feebly nodded and followed Minerva inside the darkened room.

As soon as the door shut, Minerva had pressed Xiomara up against the door. She put her hands on the shorter woman's shoulders and traced them down her arms while slowly moving so their lips were a mere centimeter apart. She closed her eyes with a devilish grin on her face as Xiomara put her own hands behind Minerva's neck and pulled her in for a kiss.

When they pulled apart to capture some air, Minerva pleaded, "Mara, please. Kiss my neck. I've been wanting-" Xiomara's lips quickly complied with the demand and Minerva gasped at the contact, and her head spun. With a quick movement, Xiomara had switched positions with the taller woman and was now holding Minerva against the wall.

"Love, you are so delicious. I look forward to seeing you next Saturday morning. I really want to hear more of your stories, and the trip to London should be a great opportunity to spend some time together without being watched." Hooch paused and her eyes crinkled, "And perhaps we'll catch glimpses of one another at meals when Dolores isn't looking."

Minerva captured Xiomara's lips for another quick kiss.

And then, quite suddenly, Xiomara was gone.


	5. Frustrations

_Well, the chapters are definitely a bit longer lately, eh? Thanks for reading and for the wonderfully helpful reviews along the way._

**Frustrations**

Saturday morning, Minerva awoke with a bit of a headache. As she rose, the events of the previous night descended upon her.

'_Gods and Goddesses, what was I doing?' _

Noticing that she had slept in later than intended, she threw on some comfortable clothes and a set of robes, scuttling off to the Great Hall for breakfast. It was a Saturday, she reasoned, and she could freshen up afterwards. Her eyes fell on the Ravenclaw table as she entered the loud room. Luna Lovegood stared at her blankly as she passed, oblivious to the chatter around her. As usual, Saturday mornings were a bit more rambunctious in the Great Hall, likely due to students letting out pent up energy as they entered the weekend.

The echoing voices and general clatter of plates and silverware did nothing for the pounding in her temples. Taking a deep breath, Minerva attempted to focus her thoughts on the hot cup of tea she would have momentarily.

With a sigh of relief, she slid into her chair at the front dais, and immediately reached for the steaming mug that appeared before her.

'_Thank goodness. No Dolores; no Albus; no Xiomara.'_

Minerva still could hardly believe her forward behavior the previous night. Savoring the hot liquid, she felt her pain dissipating.

"Professor McGonagall. I'm surprised to see you this morning." Professor Snape's eyes appeared to sparkle with delight, which gave Minerva a very ill feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Whatever do you mean, Severus?" Minerva snapped at him before turning to sprinkle brown sugar over her oatmeal.

He dropped his voice as he continued, "Gryffindor's Fat Lady told me this morning that you were quite amorous with Madam Hooch last night."

Minerva almost dropped the sugar spoon but caught it at the last moment. She gripped it tightly and raised it as if it were her wand. She pointed the bowl of the spoon at his face, a look of righteous anger on her face.

He smiled triumphantly, raising an eyebrow, "Minerva. If you don't have your actual wand with you, I would suggest using a nonverbal spell. I highly doubt you can cast a decent spell with an eating utensil."

"Don't tempt me…" she started, her voice quivering.

"Contain yourself, and your spoon," he cut her off, with a momentary twitch of the lips. "Madam Hooch clarified things this morning." He eyed her warily, looking for a reaction. With a start, she felt him attempt to enter her thoughts.

Looking away from his dark eyes, she thought with steely purpose, _'Just try. Just you try. I will transfigure you into Ronald Weasley's broomstick if you dare use legilimency on me.'_

As she felt him withdrawing his attempt, curiosity rose in her chest.

"What did she say happened?"

Professor Snape's thin lips pulled back in a rather sinister smile, "She indicated that she plied you with Fire whiskey and attempted to get a little too…friendly with you."

Minerva paused with a spoonful of oatmeal in midair and fixed her gaze upon him.

"To be honest, Minerva, I don't believe her explanation. It sounded like every shallow rumor ever told about her. Unoriginally cliché."

"I'm sure I wouldn't know, Severus." Minerva ate a few more bites of her oatmeal before reaching again for her mug.

As she took a few long gulps, he carefully cleared his throat.

'_Oh, dear. What is he going to say now?'_

"Minerva, it is admirable that you are willing to allow her to punish your students after last night. That is, if Rolanda's account is true."

Minerva furrowed her brow and pinned him with sharp green eyes. Severus calmly pointed in the general direction of the Weasley children seated at the far end of the Gryffindor table.

Upon first glance, Minerva could not determine what it was he meant her to see. Then, she began to pull apart the scene. Hermione was looking annoyed while attempting to read The Daily Prophet. Across from her, Harry sat picking at his meal, although Minerva could see very little of him due to Hermione's newspaper. Next to Harry, Ron kept stealing glances across the table at Ginny, who was sitting beside Hermione. None of this scene so far was remarkable. From this angle, Minerva could only see the back of Ginny, but as the girl occasionally turned her head, the witch saw that the youngest Weasley's neck was as red as her hair, contrasting against the dull black of her well worn hand-me-down robes. Ginny's head movements led Minerva's gaze back across the table. There, a few feet down the bench from Ron were Fred and George. Minerva stopped eating her oatmeal and refocused on the twins. She had not seen them look as glum as at that very moment. This was highly unusual behavior for them. Fred shook his head from side to side as George appeared to say something to a person squatting low between them and Ron.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" Minerva whispered. Her question was meant for no one in particular. Severus, however, could not help but reply.

"From the looks of things, Madam Hooch is the first Professor to ever get those boys to appear repentant. Something I previously thought only their mother could do – and then only infrequently."

"Oh, shut up."

Rather than looking upset, Professor Snape appeared pleased that he had stimulated such a reaction.

Minerva rose from her chair and crossed behind Severus and the empty chair belonging to Dolores. With deliberate steps, she moved down the dais and in the direction of Madam Hooch and the twins. As she went, Xiomara's ruffled silver tufts came into view. Minerva forced her lips to stay set in a thin line.

She saw as Fred motioned feebly towards the newly vacated seat at the Head table. George and Xiomara's eyes followed his gesture. And all three of them froze when they realized the Deputy Headmistress was no longer sitting up there. Minerva smiled sardonically at this.

'_Xiomara had better be afraid. What is she doing reprimanding my students?! And how dare she be able to produce such looks of contrite-ness in them when even I, their Head of House, cannot?!'_

Too late, George spotted her. Before he could alert Fred or Xiomara, Professor McGonagall was upon them.

The twins stood immediately, "Good morning, Professor McGonagall." They spoke in unison, both looking a bit ill.

"Good morning, Fred. George." As she turned her gaze towards Madam Hooch, she prepared to speak, a multitude of angry words battling to be the first out of her mouth.

"Madam Hooch," she stated sharply.

Xiomara shot up and stood stiffly without a word. Minerva noticed how neat as a pin she appeared and almost allowed her anger with the woman to melt – but not quite.

"What in Merlin's beard are you doing? You have read the various Educational Decrees from the Ministry's High Inquisitor, have you not?" Her harsh voice rang out, and students sitting nearby became suddenly silent.

"I was simply having a conversation, Deputy Headmistress. And, to your second question, yes, I have read the official decrees, including the one you are alluding to, Number 26."

Minerva felt the sting of Xiomara's formal use of her title. She now looked the woman squarely in the eyes and…

'_Did she just wink at me?'_

The twins looked on as Professor McGonagall appeared to lose some of her rigidity.

"So, I can safely assume that you are NOT providing them information about something outside your area of expertise?"

"Yes, ma'am, you may."

"And, I can also safely assume that you are NOT reprimanding them directly? Because if they are involved in activities that ought to result in punishment, I know that you would bring that to me so that I might mete out their fate accordingly."

"Of course, ma'am."

"That last bit was NOT a question, Xio-, Madam Hooch," Minerva corrected herself, a slight blush rising in her cheeks.

"Understood." Here, Madam Hooch allowed the smallest of smiles to tug at her lips as she bowed slightly. She put her hands behind her back during the move, sliding a roll of parchment up her sleeve.

"Gentlemen, thank you for your time. As I mentioned a moment ago, please pass along that message to your father and give Molly my regards."

"Yes, Madam Hooch," Fred beamed. George continued to watch Professor McGonagall.

"Might I be excused?" Xiomara moved to stand directly in front of Minerva. There was a strong scent of lemon wood polish about her this close up.

Minerva sighed, realizing she was not going to find out anything more from the trio.

"Yes." As soon as the word escaped her lips, the flight instructor appeared to literally float out of the room. With another sigh, Minerva pierced the twins in a glare. The boys dropped back to the bench seat. As they did so, Minerva let her gaze wander to Ginny.

"Miss Weasley, is something the matter?" It was obvious that Ginny was trying to slide away from her and as close to Hermione as safely possible.

"No, Professor."

'_Brilliant. I'm not going to get a bloody thing out of anyone.'_ Minerva silently fumed. She strode out of the Great Hall, her head held high, lips pinched. It was going to be a long day.

The days seemed to drag by horribly. Minerva found herself looking out the window between classes, admiring the wonderful weather and daydreaming about picnics, long walks, and time by the lake. On occasion, she would spy Xiomara working with students out on the Quidditch pitch. The spiky haired woman would demonstrate different maneuvers, take-offs and landings for the students. Minerva's eyes would follow her movements with rapt attention. The demonstration sessions varied by whatever year group she had at the time, but would inevitably be followed by the sound of Hooch's voice floating over the grounds as she called out encouragements to the youth as they practiced the same actions.

By the time Thursday rolled around, Professor McGonagall was sure she was just as bad as most of the springtime love sick students herself. Therefore, her heartbreak was intensified when Madam Hooch approached her in the staff lounge with bad news.

"Hand me the canister from the corner?"

Minerva pulled the silver toned canister out from behind several mugs and handed it to the requestor. She had been lost in thought over the misery that Umbridge was causing and did not pay attention to whom was speaking to her.

"Thank you, Minnie." This whispered expression of gratitude pulled the Transfiguration professor back into the reality of the stale, old room.

"Hmm? Oh. Madam Hooch." Minerva's eyes twinkled as she addressed her colleague. Taking a glance around to verify if they were alone, she spotted Professor Sprout sitting in a chair, half asleep.

"Good afternoon. I've been looking for you. Madam Pomfrey has to go to some extended Mediwitch conference or other. She leaves Saturday and will be gone a full week. In any event, I've been asked to cover the clinic in her absence. So, I'm afraid I have to reschedule that trip to Daigon Alley."

"I dare say, she chose a good time to escape the confines of Hogwarts." Minerva swallowed back the lump in her throat.

"How so?" Madam Hooch spooned a couple of heaping tablespoons of coffee from the container into a tall mug. She closed and snapped the lid on the container back into place. Minerva saw green smudges of grass on Hooch's shirt cuff as she moved about making coffee.

"With the approach of OWLs and NEWTs, the 5th and 7th years are showing signs of stress." Minerva tentatively reached out and touched the stained shirtsleeve.

"I should have known," Xiomara chuckled. "I forgot that someone mentioned Hannah Abbott was in the infirmary yesterday. Can't blame Poppy for wanting a moment's rest, however. And I'm sure the conference will do her good. Being tied down to the infirmary during such times…bound to drive her spare." As Hooch stirred some water just off a boil into her mug, Minerva frowned.

"Why are you covering for Poppy? Are you trained as a Healer?"

"Actually, I was a medic when I played for the Harpies. There were always two of us trained in basic medical skills. Did a right good job of it, too, if I say so myself. Well," she paused briefly, "I suppose I ought to get back down to the field. I have 12 year-old Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors this period. They have that cocky attitude that becomes so prevalent this time of the year among 1st years."

"I'll walk out with you." Minerva followed the shorter woman out of the room as Pomona began to snore loudly. They moved silently towards the doors leading outside. As they crossed the threshold and into the foggy air, Minerva pulled at the collar of her robes, protecting her slender neck from the moist chill.

"Do you fancy a picnic sometime this weekend, or are you in the hospital wing all through?"

Xiomara stopped walking and put a hand at the small of Minerva's back for a moment as she prepared to part ways, "Minnie, why don't we just have a picnic inside? I doubt," she signaled with a hand to the sky, "the weather outside will be all that pleasant anyway." She flashed a smile and then strode off, catching up to a cluster of students as she went. Minerva looked on as Xiomara became quickly engaged in an animated conversation with a couple of the young Hufflepuffs, taking occasional sips of her coffee. The trees rustled in the April breeze, bits of fog seeming to catch on the branches like torn sheets, obscuring the view. Xiomara glanced briefly back over her shoulder while placing a gentle thrust on a student's shoulders. Minerva wasn't sure, but there may have been the shadow of a smirk in there somewhere.

After several minutes of further contemplation, Professor McGonagall turned and slipped back in the castle with a heavy heart.

'_No London trip this weekend.' _

Sunday afternoon, Minerva hummed quietly while she moved down the corridor to the hospital dormitory. She was absentmindedly swinging a rather large, heavy picnic basket on one arm and had a bit of a bounce in her step.

"Ouch. Oh. Sorry, Albus."

Professor Dumbledore smiled at her and his eyes twinkled over his half-moon spectacles.

"Minerva. I am sorry for my errant wandering. I am almost surprised to see that it is you, however, that I tripped over."

"Albus," she sighed and grudgingly requested clarification. "WHY are you surprised to see me?"

He chuckled and gave a gentle tug on his beard, "I am not surprised to see you so much as surprised to see that it is you. I was rather certain in that instant before we collided that the person headed towards me had a skip to their step." He slid his glasses off and gently polished them.

"Perhaps it was just a smudge."

"I daresay it was. Have I ever been known to skip? What piffle."

He smiled, eyes twinkling as she replaced his glasses, "I also thought I heard singing."

"Seriously, Albus, I believe that Dolores' presence must be getting to you. Madam Pomfrey has a large supply of freshly made Calming Draught on hand this time of year."

Albus gave her a wry smile as he turned to continue on his way, "Ah, I don't think I shall need it. But, I do believe you might find something, or someone, to calm your nerves in the infirmary at present."

Before Minerva could respond, he escaped around a corner, blue robes sailing behind him. When she arrived in the hospital wing moments later, Minerva was surprised to see several beds occupied. Xiomara was nowhere to be seen.

"Do you REALLY think I'll be alright, Madam Hooch?" A plaintive voice echoed from the office.

"Don't be a twit, Christina. You'll be fine. You'll DO fine. You'll be sure to get an 'E' in Runes after today. If you want to run through your Potions next Saturday, though, I understand. Now, get along. Plenty of fresh air out there to enjoy. Go on." A tall, slightly overweight Gryffindor student scuttled by Minerva.

"Ms Florin? What are you doing here?" Minerva was frustrated to see a 7th year from her own house here without her knowledge. _Was Hooch tutoring her?_

"Professor McGonagall, step in. Christina, what did I say? GET ALONG." A stern voice remarked, and the young woman skittered out of the dormitory.

Minerva was surprised at the sharp tone, "Madam Hooch. While you may be quite used to directing students out on the Quidditch Pitch, I can assure you, such a dictatorial attitude is NOT acceptable with staff members."

A warm laugh caught Minerva completely off guard. One of the students in a nearby bed also chuckled. Both Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch turned their attention to the young man. He abruptly fell silent.

As Minerva's eyes flashed and she prepared to bite into him for his inappropriate laughter, she felt a hand on her breastbone. Keeping one hand on Minerva, holding her back, Xiomara engaged the student.

"Peter. You and I may, indeed, appreciate that 'Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure.' However, we still show respect to Gryffindors...to include Professor McGonagall."

Hooch let the hand that had been on Minerva's chest fall. Minerva instantly missed the contact. She motioned towards Poppy's offices. Once they entered, Hooch closed the door. Minerva studied her outfit – a black v-neck jumper with colorful specks of color woven throughout worn over her usual white oxford and school tie. This was paired with black, loose-fitting slacks. Overall, she looked like a Muggle.

"So, brought me a piece?"

"Hmm?"

"Brought me a piece, Minerva? Food. The picnic basket."

"Oh, yes." Minerva nervously set the picnic basket on Madam Pomfrey's desk. She watched with a glazed look as Xiomara immediately opened it and began rummaging around inside.

"That comment back there to Peter Banks. You said – well, what I mean to ask is – did _you_ attend Hogwarts, Xiomara?"

"Ah, you didn't know I was once a Ravenclaw?" She paused, briefly. "Well, I suppose my brief attendance at Hogwarts has never really come up in the staff meetings. And other than Sibyll, no one else has shown much interest in my past – besides the superficial Quidditch banter." Madam Hooch resumed her search through the picnic basket, pulling out a blanket, which she tossed on the floor.

"I give up, Minnie. Where are the…I was hoping you would bring a 'chip butty'. Poppy said that you've made them before. They are a bit like a sandwich, aren't they? Ah, well." Here, Xiomara sighed and pulled out a packet of cookies.

Professor McGonagall looked on, becoming increasingly amused by the woman before her. Xiomara kept the cookies in one hand while dropping to the blanket on the floor. She then settled herself, cross-legged, and began peeling the wrapper off the packet. She pulled out a cookie with one hand and took large bites, while with the other hand she gave a tug on Minerva's robes.

"Si- -own," she said around a mouthful.

Minerva carefully tucked her skirt and robes around her slender legs as she settled on the floor.

"I brought pasta, because Professor Trelawney," Minerva shivered involuntarily at the mention of the Seer's name, "said that you have some sort of fixation with it."

Xiomara's face broke into a wide grin of delight, "Oh, really? How fabulous! Better than some sandwich with a silly name, certainly." She held out the packet to Minerva, who shook her head.

"You don't like cookies?"

"I do, but not first thing."

Minerva admired the warm glow of Xiomara's eyes as the smaller woman responded, "My dear, Minnie. I am NOT a cat. I only have one life, and I intend to fully enjoy it."

Before she could stop to think it through, Minerva had reached out and impulsively grabbed a cookie from Madam Hooch and popped a bite into her mouth.

"There you go." Xiomara smiled and shifted her weight.

"Oh, what is this?" She dug out a worn copy of 'Beedle the Bard' out of a cargo pocket of her slacks and tossed it on the blanket to the side.

"What is that about?" Minerva gestured towards the book.

"Oh, nothing. I was reading it again the other day after I had seen Potter using his invisibility cloak. Reminded me of a particular story. But," Xiomara's eyes twinkled, "I would much rather talk about other things."

"Really?" Minerva allowed herself to smile at this. She felt the golden eyes caress her face and was pleased that she was the object of this woman's attention. Her cheeks warmed.

As Xiomara reached upwards to the basket, Minerva muttered the locomotor spell and the basket floated towards Hooch's outstretched fingers, which she then placed between them on the floor.

"I never realized you had attended Hogwarts. Really?"

"Only for my second and third year. Father had to move the family to Argentina directly after that. And then Canada. By the time I started University, the dark era in the United States was over, and my father was able to return the family there. I went on to play for the Holyhead Harpies directly afterwards. Well, love, just listen to me ramble."

"Egg?"

"Excuse me?" Xiomara sat bolt upright and looked at the item that Minerva held before her, cheeks and ears turning red.

"Scotch egg. It's a boiled egg rolled in a bit of meat and bread crumbs and fried up." Minerva moved the egg even closer in towards the petite woman before her. Their eyes met and Minerva was surprised by the anger and shock directed back at her.

"Oh. Oh dear. What is it, Xiomara?" Minerva flustered, pulling the egg back. "I'm really sorry. What is it?"

Xiomara Hooch sat there, completely gobsmacked. Minerva waited, wondering what was wrong. After a moment, Xiomara's flushed coloring subsided a little bit and she stood and walked towards the door.

"I've got to check one of the students. I'll be back."

Minerva just sat there.

'_What the bloody hell did I do?'_

After what seemed like ages, Xiomara returned and sat down again.

"Sorry about the wait, Minerva. Had to take some books away from one of the students intent on attempting to study when he ought to be resting." Madam Hooch reached into the basket and pulled out a covered dish. She lifted the lid to find steaming hot angel hair pasta covered with butter and specks of cheese. She smiled up at Professor McGonagall.

"Just how I like it. Care for some?" Her eyes shone.

Minerva mutely nodded, still unsure what was going on. Hooch pulled a couple of plates out of the basket and slid a pile of the pale pasta onto each. As she passed one of the dishes to Minerva, her eyes paused on the breadcrumb covered sphere sitting next to Minerva's knee. Her face began to redden again. She pulled a handkerchief out from a breast pocket of her oxford and placed it gingerly over the egg, picking it up and setting it behind the basket, out of her line of sight.

As Xiomara handed a fork to her, Minerva found her voice, "Mara?"

Madam Hooch wouldn't look her in the eye and replied, "I simply love this," digging in to her pasta with gusto.

"Mara. Please." Hooch put a forkful in her mouth, the various length ends of angel hair wriggling as she slurped them in. As she finished chewing the bite, she spoke.

"Sorry. I have a difficult time eating this like a proper lady, Minerva. It's just so delightful to eat. Like little squirming –"

"Talk. To. Me." Minerva cut her off. At this cold fury, Xiomara raised her eyes to find tears of frustration prepared to spill down Minerva's cheeks. Xiomara transfigured the cookie packet wrapper into a second handkerchief and lifted it gingerly to first one green eye and then the other. Both women were silent.

"Please, let's enjoy our meal. I, I promise to talk about it with you, but not now. Not here." They stared at one another for long moments, each pleading silently with the other. Finally, Minerva dipped her head.

"Okay."

A wide smile spread across Xiomara's face and she stretched herself towards the tall witch.

"Thank you." She placed a butterfly kiss upon thin lips with her own pert ones and sat back.

"It is a difficult subject, Minerva, and I don't have the same Gryffindor courage that you do. I just need some time."

Minerva was very aware of the fact that the small woman had reverted back to using her proper name versus 'Minnie.' She reached over to put a hand on the smaller woman's knee. Xiomara put one of her own hands over Minerva's and they sat there, quietly. After a moment, they both shifted their plates to the side and sat next to one another on the blanket, simply holding hands. Both being mature witches, they had leaned their backs up against the desk for support.

Neither was aware of how long they sat there. A sharp popping sound interrupted their separate reveries as a house elf appeared. The elf was short and rotund. A crisp white dress fit loosely over her rotund belly and a very clean black apron was wrapped around her waist.

"Nipsy. A pleasure to see you," Xiomara Hooch stood smoothly.

"Madam Hooch. You already have food? This is good." Nipsy smiled and turned towards Professor McGonagall, wiping her hands carefully on the apron, leaving white flour fingerprint stains.

"I apologize, Nipsy. I forgot to tell you that Professor McGonagall was bringing me lunch. But we do have 4 students out there in beds who might appreciate a treat."

"Very well," and before Nipsy popped out again, she winked at Xiomara.

"Care to explain that?" Minerva queried as Xiomara gave her a hand in standing up. They stood facing each other for a moment, and Minerva could see Xiomara struggling with whether she wanted to kiss or not. They each took a step back.

"Nipsy is a freed house elf and works with Poppy. She doesn't seem to understand that I don't eat as much or as often as Poppy does. Every couple of hours while I am covering for Poppy, Nipsy appears to ply me with meals and snacks. Poppy has, it appears, told her all sorts of tales about me."

"Oh." Minerva digested the information.

Several yelps were heard from the students in the beds outside the room and then Fawkes flew into Poppy's office, circled once and left again. Another chorus of yelps was heard.

Minerva turned to Madam Hooch, "That will be Albus. I suppose I must go." Xiomara picked up the basket and Minerva murmured a quick spell, flicked her wand, and the corners of the blanket folded over the pasta dishes, silverware and such. The blanket continued to fold in upon itself as the basket lid opened. In one final swish of the wand, the blanket deposited itself inside the bottomless basket.

Xiomara handed the woven basket to Minerva effortlessly as the tall, slender witch heaved it over her arm and turned to leave.

"Wait. Minnie?"

Professor McGonagall turned back again, her emerald green robes twirling around her.

"It was a lovely meal. And more than that, a delightful gesture."

Minerva nodded curtly and departed.

When she got to Albus' office and set the basket down (realizing only then that she might have deposited it in her rooms en route), she was only slightly surprised to see him move quickly to it and begin digging around.

"Ah, there we go, a nice fresh bag of lemon sherbets. I was sure I smelled them when I ran into you earlier, Minerva." He smiled warmly at her while holding up the cellophane bag, triumphantly.

"I forgot I had dropped them in there," she smiled back at him.

A bit of the blanket had been inadvertently pulled out of the basket as well. Professor Dumbledore gently pushed the blanket back in. As he did so, his hand struck something, which he removed from the basket to examine - a small book.

"Well, Minerva. I was looking for my original edition of this book the other day. I have no idea where it scampered off to and, well, while this copy looks a bit battered—do you mind if I borrow it?"

"Actually, Albus, that copy isn't mine at all. I think that it belongs to Xio-, to Madam Hooch." She pursed her lips unconsciously.

"Oh, well. I will be sure to ask her if I may keep it for a bit. Speaking of Xiomara, I hope you are at last getting to really get to know her. Like Severus, she is not the person others would otherwise believe." He turned to her while unwrapping a lemon sherbet.

"Dolores moves her Queen tonight to put me in 'check.' She is, no doubt, quite happy. However, she does not realize that I am prepared to put her in 'check mate.' Speaking of which….here she is." There was a loud rapping on his door. Minerva silently cursed to herself as she steeled her nerves. It seemed to her that other than that first date, every other time she and Madam Hooch had met up something went amiss.

Later that night, Minerva escorted a troubled Harry Potter and confused Marietta Edgecombe down from Dumbledore's office. She deposited Harry in the Gryffindor common room, which was silent. All the other members of the DA were likely in their individual dormitories feigning sleep. She gave Harry a pat on the back and watched him go up the stairs to the boys' rooms.

"Come, Miss Edgecombe. Let's get you to Madam Hooch in the hospital wing." She felt the girl stop walking.

"Madam Pomfrey is away, but Madam Hooch is perfectly capable," she stated, guessing at the cause for the Ravenclaw's hesitation. She took hold of the teen's upper arm and they made their way down several flights of moving stairways and stairways with missing steps. It felt like a very long trip to Minerva.

She deposited Marietta in a bed, and found Xiomara's feet visible behind a curtain pulled around another bed.

"Madam Hooch? I have another student here. She's settling in one of the empty beds," she called out.

"Oh, dear. Minerva? Is that you? You can come around, I think. Is it okay with you, Alicia?"

"Mmm-hmm."

Minerva carefully pulled back a bit of curtain and stepped inside. She paused to watch as Alicia Spinnet lay on her stomach, her back exposed from hips to shoulder, her head turned to the side and resting on a pillow atop her folded arms. There were long, deep cuts across the width of her back and yellow raised bumps along the edges. Minerva's stomach turned.

"Look at something else," Xiomara commanded. Minerva fixed her gaze on the smaller woman instead.

"Thank you."

"So, what's up?"

"I'd rather wait until," she motioned towards Alicia's head, "we are out of earshot."

"We can put a simple Muffliato spell on Alicia, Minerva."

Alicia piped up, "That sounds like a wonderful idea, Madam Hooch. Peace and quiet. Brilliant."

Xiomara gave Alicia a playful slap on a bit of healthy tissue by a shoulder blade, "Miss Smartypants, watch it. I get no respect off the Quidditch field, Minerva. No respect at all."

"You are just so much more relaxed outside of Quidditch, that's all. I'm sorry." Alicia pleaded.

Madam Hooch smiled and nodded to Minerva, "If you don't mind providing the spell. My hands are a bit, er, occupied." Minerva glanced down and saw that Xiomara was using a tongue depressor with her right hand to scoop large quantities of a foul-smelling silvery white paste from a tub and spreading it into the wounds. Her left hand was sheathed in a glove of sorts and she was using a couple of fingers to smooth the paste out along the edges.

Minerva quickly moved her focus to Alicia's head and cast the spell. She explained to Xiomara what had happened in Dumbledore's office.

Xiomara took it all in stride. As she removed the glove and replaced the lid on the pot of paste, she reached for some dry gauze rolls. As she moved to wrap it around Miss Spinnet's torso to cover the paste-caked wounds, Minerva curiously noted that the student instinctively raised herself a little off the mattress so that Xiomara's hands could move under her belly with the rolled gauze.

Minerva gulped as she watched the Madam Hooch's experienced hands gently move over the smooth skin, tucking underneath, just below the curve of Alicia's breasts, then back around again. There was a rhythm to her movements, and sensuality as well.

"Minerva? Minerva?"

"Hmm?" She removed her square glasses and rubbed her eyes.

"I was asking you if you could wake Miss Granger and find out what spell or curse she had used to cause Miss Edgecombe's injuries."

"What makes you think Hermione had anything to do with it?" Minerva asked sharply. Xiomara had finished the wrapping and was now taking a small amount of hand cream and was rubbing it carefully into the exposed skin of Alicia's upper back and shoulders. A slight scent of lavender tickled at Minerva's nose.

"Seriously, Minerva. Let's not play games, shall we?" Hooch stopped rubbing and wiped her hands on a towel lying beside the bed.

"Oh, are we done?" Alicia whimpered, "That felt so good."

Xiomara slipped her wand out of a cargo pocket and removed the muffliato spell. She pulled the covers carefully up to cover Alicia.

"Miss Spinnet, I am glad to hear you enjoyed it. Hopefully that will help you get some much needed sleep." She turned and took Minerva's elbow with one hand while opening the curtains with the other. The women walked over to Madam Pomfrey's office where Xiomara washed her hands and then jotted down a couple of quick notes on a piece of parchment. Minerva watched silently, still fuming over the accusation, true or not, made against Hermione.

They moved back out of the office and towards Marietta's bed. Madam Hooch took the parchment she had been writing on, rolled it up, and tucked it into a pocket.

When she saw Marietta's face, Xiomara showed no emotion, but nodded slightly.

"Miss Edgecombe?" Marietta looked tearfully at her.

"You will be fine. I don't doubt it will take more than a few days for this to clear up, but there will be no permanent marks. Not to worry."

Tears poured down the young girl's face, rolling around the pustule moguls on her cheeks. Xiomara sat on the edge of the bed and wrapped her in a hug. Marietta sobbed for a few moments. When released, she seemed to almost immediately fall asleep against the pillow.

"Poor thing. Wore herself out there." Xiomara stated as she waved her wand at the damp spot on her jumper and used a drying spell.

"If she hadn't have done what she did, she wouldn't be in this predicament to begin with." Minerva responded savagely.

Xiomara tilted her head as she looked at Minerva, "Well, that is one attitude to take. You know, I'm not one prone to being all touchy-feely, Minerva. Being a medic to grown women on a professional Quidditch team is one thing. Playing nurse to a lot of children, however, really takes a toll. It has been a long day for both us, I dare say. And, I can think of only one thing that will help me regain some sanity. Come along."

Minerva was completely worn out by the evening's events and the temporary loss of her best friend, Albus. She felt Xiomara's hand on her forearm, pulling her towards the office. The soft snores of sleeping students echoed around them. Xiomara flicked her wand and most of the torches and candles were snuffed out, throwing the ward into semi-darkness. From behind the office door, Madam Hooch grabbed a broom and strode back out with the broom in her right hand, and her left hand clasping Minerva's, tugging her along.

Once they were outside, Xiomara had Minerva sit behind her on the broom. Minerva hugged her tight when they first took off. After the initial minute or two of adjustment, however, Minerva eased her grip. She was amazed at the ease with which Xiomara controlled their flight. They swooped and soared and occasionally took a dip or partial roll. There was such a rush from the speed and the feel of the cool wind rushing around them, the cares and worries of Hogwarts melting away below them. Minerva relaxed herself into Xiomara's back, allowing herself to simply enjoy the ride. Less than half-an-hour later, Xiomara brought them in for a gentle landing near the greenhouses. As they walked back towards the castle, Minerva realized that multiple strands of hair had slipped free of her tight bun. She reached up and let out all her hairpins, allowing the wavy dark tresses to fall over her shoulders.

As they reached a side door back in to the castle, Minerva felt a hand running through her hair and a shiver of pleasure ran down her spine.

"Minnie, what a beautiful cascade of curls." Just as quickly, the hand was gone and they were inside.

"I have to go send this note off to Miss Spinnet's parents. Although," Xiomara paused while holding up the scroll of parchment she had slipped from her pocket, " I suppose it will wait until morning. I can send off a note to Miss Edgecombe's parents at the same time that way. Get some sleep, Minnie. We are almost at end of term and Sibyll is sure that a certain toad won't last that long…" Xiomara stifled a yawn.

Minerva smiled and squeezed Xiomara's hand, "Thank you for the ride. You are brilliant on a broom."

"I'd rather be brilliant at transfiguring the broom into a bed at this point."

Minerva gasped and Xiomara's ears glowed hot pink.

"I, I didn't mean it like that. I meant to sleep. I'm a bit of a twonk."

Minerva giggled, "No, dear. You are NOT a twonk. You, are, however, very tired. And so am I. Goodnight."

The women grudgingly parted ways; both casting glances back over their shoulders several times.


End file.
